Russell Westbrook downplayed any on-court back-and-forth with Damian Lillard. Instead, the Oklahoma City Thunder point will leave that for Game 4 on Sunday night.
The two All-Star guards have had quite a battle thus far in the series. They have traded trash talk on the court, big shot after big shot and some physical battles through the first three games of the series.
On Friday, it was Westbrook that topped Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers. He led the Thunder with 33 points on an efficient 4-of-6 showing from three-point range. Lillard nearly matched Westbrook with 32 points.
Westbrook downplayed the rivalry, though:
With the two teams set to meet Sunday night, the Thunder will be trying to even the series at two games apiece. In order to do so, OKC will likely need Westbrook to have another efficient shooting performance as he did in Game 3.
The combination of Lillard and C.J. McCollum have hurt the Thunder throughout the series so they will need to continue to make life difficult for them in order to have a chance in Game 4. Lillard and McCollum are combing for 56.3 points per game in the series.
The battles between Westbrook and Lillard have been arguably the best matchup so far in the NBA Playoffs as the two are among the biggest competitors in the league.
That doesn’t figure to change anytime soon.
