In order to get the game up to his desired speed, Russell Westbrook had to first slow it down. After coming around a screen, Westbrook was left wide open at the three-point line. He turned the shot down. Then he stepped inside the arc, and a defender stepped slightly to him. Still no shot. That’s when Jerami Grant, the original screener, finally sprung free and opened himself up with a seal on the block. Westbrook’s eyes were up, and Grant had to be wrapped up.
It was a hardly a standout moment in the second quarter, but that simple patience displayed by Westbrook carried on through the remainder of the game, as he used post ups and the Thunder as a team employed interior passes to get the ball deep into the paint.