Day: April 4, 2018

Russell Westbrook triple-doubles usually mean a Thunder win

Last season, the Thunder was 33-9 when Westbrook posted a triple double and 13-25 when he didn’t. This season, the Thunder is 19-5 when Westbrook posts a triple double and 25-28 when he doesn’t.

So over two seasons, OKC is 52-14 when Westbrook posts a triple double and 38-53 when he doesn’t. Which is absurd, a team depending on a solitary player to produce at that kind of production level to be successful.

And that script certainly played out Tuesday night in Golden State’s 111-107 victory over the Thunder.

Westbrook didn’t have a triple double. Through no fault of his own. Westbrook had 44 points on 15-of-26 shooting, 16 rebounds and six assists.

— The Oklahoman

Isaiah Whitehead undergoes wrist surgery

Brooklyn Nets guard Isaiah Whitehead underwent successful surgery yesterday (Tuesday) to repair the scapholunate ligament in his right wrist. The procedure was performed by Dr. Michelle Carlson at the Hospital for Special Surgery.

A timetable for his return to basketball activity will be determined at a later date.

Whitehead appeared in 16 games for Brooklyn this season, recording averages of 6.3 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 11.2 minutes per game. He also appeared in 30 games on assignment with the Long Island Nets, Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate, averaging a team-high 22.3 points per game along with 3.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 28.7 minutes per contest.

Grizzlies sign Marquis Teague for remainder of season

The Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday signed guard Marquis Teague for the remainder of the season.

Teague signed a 10-day contract with the Grizzlies on March 24 as a Call-Up from the Memphis Hustle, the team’s NBA G League affiliate.

Teague (6-2, 180) has appeared in two games as a reserve for the Grizzlies and averaged 4.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.00 steals in 26.5 minutes. The 25-year-old started all 47 of his games with the Hustle and averaged 17.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 32.5 minutes, leading the team in total points, total assists and free throws made and attempted during its inaugural season in the G League.

Selected in the first round (29th overall) of the 2012 NBA Draft following his freshman year at the University of Kentucky, Teague has appeared in 90 regular season games (three starts) during his three-year NBA career and has averaged 2.4 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 9.9 minutes for the Chicago Bulls, Brooklyn Nets and Memphis Grizzlies. The Indianapolis, Indiana native has appeared in 161 G League games (125 starts) and has averaged 15.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 5.7 assists in 30.8 minutes for the Iowa Energy, Oklahoma City Blue, Fort Wayne Mad Ants and Memphis Hustle.

DeQuan Jones named G League Most Improved Player

Fort Wayne Mad Ants forward DeQuan Jones has been named the 2017-18 NBA G League Most Improved Player. Voted on by the league’s 26 head coaches and general managers, the award honors the player who demonstrated the most significant improvement during the 2017-18 season.

In his second NBA G League season and first with the Mad Ants, Jones (6-8, 221, Miami) averaged 18.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 30.6 minutes in 49 games (48 starts). He also shot 50.8 percent from the field and ranked ninth in the NBA G League in three-point field goal percentage at 43.3.

Jones began the season by averaging 12.7 points and shooting 47.2 percent from the field and 31.6 percent from three-point range over nine games in November. He produced a breakout month in February, averaging 26.5 points and shooting 58.8 percent from the field and 45.7 percent from beyond the arc in eight games to earn NBA G League Player of the Month honors.

His strong play continued in March, when he averaged 24.2 points on 50.0 percent shooting from the field and 48.1 percent from long distance in nine games. Jones helped Fort Wayne (29-21) clinch the second seed in the NBA G League’s Eastern Conference.

The 2018 NBA G League Slam Dunk winner at NBA All-Star in Los Angeles, Jones will be presented with the Most Improved Player award before the Mad Ants play host to the third-seeded Erie BayHawks tonight in the Eastern Conference Semifinals (7 p.m. ET, ESPNU).

Guard Trey Davis of the Maine Red Claws and guard Josh Gray of the Northern Arizona Suns finished second and third in the Most Improved Player voting, respectively.