Russell Westbrook to Miss Start of Playoffs

The Houston Rockets will be without Russell Westbrook when they begin their first-round playoff series next week, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski goes as far as to say that he’s expected to miss the entire first round at a minimum.

A recently conducted MRI revealed that the 31-year-old had suffered a quadriceps strain. He’s been impacted by the injury throughout his time in the bubble but made a return to action on Tuesday only to wake up sore the following morning.

The club intends to see how Westbrook responds to rest next week, until then they’ll forge ahead without him in preparation for a playoff series with his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Westbrook and the Rockets have been one of the teams to watch in the second half of the season as the guard came into his own in Houston’s new five-out offense. He’s combined with Harden to make one of the most productive duos in the league.

Westbrook averaged 27.2 points, 7.9 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game this season.