Heading into a critical Game 5, the Houston Rockets could finally get star guard Russell Westbrook back from an injury that has held him out of the postseason thus far. Westbrook has been upgraded to questionable on the Rockets’ injury report.
Rockets guard Russell Westbrook will be upgraded to questionable to play in Game 5 vs. OKC tonight. He had been out with a strained quadriceps muscle.
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) August 26, 2020
Westbrook has missed the first four games of the first-round series due to a right quad strain, but will reportedly test the quad on Wednesday afternoon during warmups and determine his status for the game, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Houston’s Russell Westbrook is expected to test his strained quadriceps on the court prior to Game 5 vs. Oklahoma City today and make a gametime decision on returning, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 26, 2020
The Rockets have scored thanks to a patchwork of perimeter scoring threats so far in the series, but were out-executed by Oklahoma City in Game 4 despite making 23 three-pointers. A series that looked to be firmly in Houston’s control is suddenly even, but the Rockets could boast a trump card if Westbrook is able to make his way back.
The initial prognosis for Westbrook was that he could return near the end of the first round, so he is right on track here, and returning to a series that has been pretty even throughout. Of course, the storylines should Westbrook return to the court will be plentiful as well, with Westbrook returning to take on the franchise where he spent the first 12 years of his career before trading him last offseason.