Westbrook first since Jordan with 5 straight triple-doubles

Struggling to develop into a consistent scorer, Hield’s role has been reduced with almost a quarter of the season over. The more he’s out there, the more experience he gets, the better off he’s going to be. Westbrook said he doesn’t worry about the numbers.

Kevin Durant moved on to the Golden State Warriors this summer, the very same team that knocked the Thunder out in seven games previous year in the Western Conference Finals. Davis is the leading scorer in the National Basketball Association with a 31.5 average and Westbrook is just behind him with a 31.2 average.

The Thunder won the first four games of Westbrook’s triple-double stretch.

Now 21 games into the season, Westbrook continues to average a triple-double – 31.0 points, 10.8 rebounds and 11.3 assists.

“I just like to win, brother. I don’t think there’s any word to describe his play”. They know where I came from and how hard I worked and what it took for me to get here. “Every time I step on the floor, I’m blessed beyond belief”.

Thunder center Enes Kanter recorded 17 points and 10 boards. Kanter scored 17 points and added 10 rebounds as a part of a 33-point effort from the bench on the night.

Paul George scored 16 points in his return after missing four of the last five games with a sore left ankle and back. Jrue Holiday and E’Twaun Moore each scored 10 points as New Orleans fell to 7-14.

“His determination is second to none in the league”, Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. We just didn’t take advantage of it. With them, he’s done a good job, I don’t want to say nothing bad about him. “That being said, the guy still ends up with 17 rebounds, 11 assists, 27 points or whatever it is”.

Hield went on to air-ball it three more times and missed an open Anthony Davis at times on key fourth-quarter possessions. While there was an expectation for inexperience to cause an issue on defense and ball-handling, Hield also failed to consistently convert 3-point attempts. The Pelicans were only down 94-90. “Nobody likes to lose like this, but things will get better as long as we don’t split apart”. I’ve been struggling the last couple games, but I feel more confident.

As a senior at OU, Hield led the nation by making 3-pointers a 45.7 percent clip, earning him the James Naismith Award. “English is my second language”. He had seven points and three rebounds in nine minutes before coming off the court.

It’s on to Atlanta, losers of six straight, on Monday for a chance at the Thunder’s sixth consecutive win … and more history.

“We don’t have a lot of guys that other teams have”, Davis said.