Russell Westbrook passes to self off Brandon Knight, sinks layup

This self-helper from Russell Westbrook to… Russell Westbrook came with about 4:20 seconds left in Monday night’s action between Oklahoma City and Detroit.

OUCH!

Russell Westbrook tosses the incredibly clever pass off the no-no regions of Pistons’ guard, Brandon Knight, catches the deflection and hits the rack for two points. This tricky play, plus the layup put the Thunder ahead, 81-79 in what was an intensely close battle against the 0-7 Detroit Pistons.

The Thunder would eventually buckle down and escape Detroit with the W, pushing the Pistons to 0-8 on the season and bringing the defending Western Conference champs up to a respectful 6-2 record through eight games.

Westbrook stole the show with 33 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. He’s just too big, too strong and too electric for Brandon Knight.

I doubt Westbrook made a new pal with this play. The ball seems to find Knight’s sweet-spot, though the point guard didn’t seem initially phased by the shot to the groin. Speaking from experience, this type of shot tends to creep up on you, and I’m sure Knight felt the pain for the next 5-15 minutes.

The Pistons nearly stole their first win of the season, but plays like this helped the Thunder outlast this winless Detroit squad by a score of 92-90.