The Los Angeles Clippers stunned the Golden State Warriors 113-112 on Saturday behind Paul George's game-winning 3-pointer.
But Clippers guard Russell Westbrook had another quiet performance, scoring only eight points in 19 minutes off the bench. James Harden had some words of encouragement for his teammate during the game, according to Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints:
Said Harden when asked what he told his Clippers teammate, “Stay with it, you know what I mean” Like, it's a long season. And I know it's probably frustrating for him, you know, because the minutes are fluctuating. But I think all of us are trying to figure out how we want to play our different lineups, and who works better with who, and things like that. So, you know, it's frustrating. I think it's human nature that we all get frustrated. You know, we all want to put our head down and I feel like we all need somebody to pick us up and tell us it's going to be ok. You know, it's a process and we're trying to figure it out.”
Westbrook moved to a bench role with the Clippers as they worked to integrate Harden, and his numbers have suffered. Over his last 10 games, Westbrook is averaging nine points a game while shooting below 38 percent from the floor.
Coming into Saturday's contest, the Clippers had a 5-8 record over the last 13 games since adding James Harden. They've scored exactly 1,426 points. They've given up exactly 1,426 points. They have a 0-point differential with 3 more losses than wins.
Up next for the Clippers – They host the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday.