Russell Westbrook just knew something was up with the rim at Staples Center.
The basket seemed too low. The backboard seemed a little off. So he stopped the game and asked them to measure. A stadium worker climbed up a ladder, took out a level, snapped a picture and pronounced everything was in order.
"It was lopsided," Westbrook said. "At least I thought. But it don't matter."
But whatever didn't show up on that level, certainly showed up in Westbrook's performance. Because Westbrook caught fire in the second half, scoring 25 of his game-high 40 points to lead the Houston Rockets to a comeback 122-117 win over the LA Clippers Thursday night at Staples Center.