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After limiting Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook says respect his defense

By Chase Hughes

After limiting Curry, Westbrook says respect his defense originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

Wednesday night’s game between the Wizards and Warriors was billed as a battle between the NBA’s two top scorers, Bradley Beal and Stephen Curry, as they duke it out for the scoring title late in the season. Russell Westbrook, though, had other ideas.

He was assigned to guard Curry, who came into the game averaging 40.0 points in his previous 11 games while shooting 49.7% from three. Against the Wizards, he scored 18 points and went 2-for-14 from long range. That was the worst shooting night of Curry’s career among games with at least 14 3-point attempts, a sample size that now includes 82 games.

Somehow, the Wizards neutralized the hottest player on the planet. Though it took a team effort, Westbrook set the tone.

“Russ made it his mission and his challenge tonight to make things tough for Steph,” Bradley Beal said.

Westbrook was active all night guarding Curry, particularly beyond the 3-point line. He kept him uncomfortable with quick closeouts and consistent contact, bumping him off course to the extent the referees would allow it.

Behind Westbrook was help from his big men, who sprinted to the top of the key to blitz off screens and run him into double-teams inside the perimeter.

It was a strategy many teams try and it doesn’t always work. But Westbrook led the charge on top of recording a triple-double that included tying a career-high with 20 rebounds.

“Russell did a great job. He doesn’t get enough credit for the defense because he switches and… he can guard one through four as well as anyone in the league,” head coach Scott Brooks said.

Westbrook was relayed that statement by his coach, that his defense is underrated. Then, he delivered one of the best quotes of the entire NBA season.

“You know what? Definitely. I feel like I’m a player that can do it all. Defend, score; whatever it is that needs to be done,” he said. 

“My job changes every night and I feel like I’m one of those players that if I need to defend at a high level, I can do that, too. If I need to score at a high level, I can do that. Pass, I can do that. Rebound, I can do that. You want me to coach? S—, I can do that, too. I just feel like I can do everything.”

Westbrook said he took pride in guarding Curry, who like him is a former MVP and destined to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer someday. It was key in the Wizards getting their sixth straight win, a season-high streak. They have won eight of their last nine games.

The win also pushed the Wizards into sole ownership of the final spot in the play-in tournament. It was a big-time win and Westbrook played an important role in getting it.

“Steph’s been on a hot streak, he’s been playing really well and I took the challenge to start the game to make sure he didn’t continue his streak on us tonight,” Westbrook said.

What Wizards’ NBA predraft workouts were like for three likely first round picks

By Chase Hughes
Draft prospects open up about workouts with Wizards originally appeared on NBC Sports WashingtonAs the Wizards continue to evaluate options for their first round draft pick, last week they brought in three guards who most expect to be taken in the first round; Chris Duarte of Oregon, Ayo Dosunmu of Illinois and Josh Christopher of Arizona State. All three are guards currently projected to go in the second half of the first round.Here are notes on how each of their workouts went...CHRIS DUARTEDuarte had a solo workout with the Wizards and after that had workouts scheduled with the Thunder and Pelicans. Due to it being an individual workout, Duarte said he took a lot of shots and did a lot of running for the Wizards. "They want to see how you think," he said.Duarte gave specifics on how he could help the Wizards."I see myself on the Wizards' roster very well beside Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook. I see myself helping the team with my shot, my preparation and off the ball defensively," he said.The most interesting part of Duarte's workout seemed to be when the Wizards asked him to draw up plays, presumably on a white board. "I was out there like a coach drawing plays. They just want to see how I think as a player on and off the court," Duarte said.That's interesting because it's a tactic the Wizards have used in the past and famously for Troy Brown Jr., who like Duarte happened to go to Oregon. The Wizards drafted Brown 15th overall in 2018 and this year they are picking 15th once again.AYO DOSUNMUA 6-foot-5 combo guard, Dosunmu has the highest draft grade of these three players. Like Duarte, he said he would like to play with Beal and Westbrook.Dosunmu said his workout with the Wizards was very unique as far as they go. He said the Wizards did a series of drills to test his basketball IQ, including one where he had to dribble through cones and then make split-second passing decisions based on color codes assigned to coaches. "That was really fun because it challenged your mind and your basketball IQ to make the right pass," Dosunmu said.Dosunmu was asked why he would be able to contribute in the NBA sooner than later. He highlighted his versatility."Being able to guard multiple positions, I think that would be one of the reasons. And then also just being able to take stress off other ball-handlers being able to handle the ball and make reads off pick-and-rolls," he said.JOSH CHRISTOPHERChristopher worked out with Dosunmu and compared the intensity to the NCAA Tournament because Dosunmu played on one of the country's top teams last year. Christopher painted himself as a basketball junkie, having grown up in a family where all four kids went on to play in college."Basketball is pretty much all we know. My dad used to say you can't live in this house unless you know how to dribble a basketball. That's almost I know," Christopher said.Christopher said he used to ballboy at Cal-Berkely when his older brother played there. He also saw LeBron James play in high school. Well, technically."I got to see LeBron play when I was a baby and didn't even know about it," Christopher said.His father apparently took him to UCLA to watch James when he was on St. Vincent-St. Mary's. Christopher said his versatility on both ends of the floor is his biggest selling point. He looks forward to the space of the NBA and believes his midrange game will carry over well.The midrange game is one area where Christopher sees similarities between himself and Beal. There's also another thing."I mean, that man's legs are huge. My legs are huge as well," he said.
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