The Oklahoma City Thunder have played eight games this season without starting point guard Russell Westbrook and they will be forced to do so once again Monday night.
The NBA suspended Westbrook for one game on Sunday after he picked up his 16th technical foul of the season. Players automatically receive a one-game suspension once they reach the 16th technical foul threshold.
Westbrook missed five games due to a sprained left ankle, two games because of knee surgery and one game for the birth of his twin girls — the Thunder are 5-3 in those games.
As the Thunder get set to play the Miami Heat on Monday, the team will likely turn to Dennis Schroder in his place. While the entire roster will be counted on, Paul George knows he must step up without Westbrook.
I gotta step up. He has done so much for us this year and in return, I gotta do the same. I gotta step up and be accountable in this situation [and] make sure my guys are ready for tonight in the absence of Russ.
In those eight games without Westbrook this season, George is averaging 25.5 points per game. Even with Westbrook not playing on Monday, the Thunder are 5.5-point favorites in the contest.
George has mostly struggled recently as he plays through a lingering shoulder issue but appears to be turning things around a bit over his past three games so the Thunder will need George on Monday to be efficient.
The game is set to tip off at 7 p.m. CT and can be seen on FS OK.
