Russell Westbrook can go from stationary to licking the backboard in the span of one or two nonchalant steps. He’s just standing there, and then something unseen explodes, and the ball’s in his clutches. Aside from making him, at 6-foot-3, one of the best rebounding guards of all time, this tireless springiness has just been hilarious to watch.
In his 18-rebound performance against the Knicks on Monday, he snatched candy from some seven-foot babies.
And here, careening from out of bounds to rob Willy Hernangomez and Derrick Rose:
Occasionally you’ll find a sequence like this: no matter where on the court Westbrook’s body scrambles, his spirit stays hovering around the rim. He appears to require no recovery time from jump to jump—just keep mashing the X button. Any single one of these grasshopper leaps would probably relegate me to an ice bath for a day, but here’s something like five in a row:
This one could be his best of the season:
That board was crucial in helping the Thunder escape with an overtime win against the Wizards last night. That game ended with Westbrook forcing OT with a three in the final moments of the fourth quarter, and then outscoring the Wizards 14-10 in the extra period.
So, how did Westbrook snag that clutch rebound?
I like that. It’s much more convincing than my speculation: he is rubbing Flubber on his soles every night.