Tonight at 8:00 p.m. ET on TNT the Miami Heat (38-14) will try to avenge a January 29th ravaging at the hands of Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder (43-12) in a matchup of the world's top two players. Live stream the game by clicking this link; Heat fans can listen to the game on 560 WQAM, while Thunder fans can find the radio broadcast on WWLS 98.1.
Tonight's battle between Durant and LeBron James figures to be scintillating, but the big story is the return of Oklahoma City point guard Russell Westbrook, who has been out of action since Christmas because of knee surgery.
"It's like trading for an All Star at the trade deadline," Durant said of Westbrook coming back. "We're looking forward to it. We're definitely excited for him to get back." Durant has exploded in Westbrook's absence, averaging a league-high 31.3 points per game while racking up a career-best 5.5 assists a night.
There are questions about whether re-introducing such a ball-dominant star to the lineup will disrupt chemistry, but Thunder coach Scott Brooks declined to discuss it, focusing instead on how healthy his star guard looked.
"I thought he had a good practice today," Brooks said. "We went pretty hard, no question. We did a lot of things in transition, we did a lot of halfcourt. We did a lot of defensive drills, and he was able to participate in all of our drills."
The Heat may be the defending champs, but the Thunder and Pacers appear to be nipping at their heels and gnawing into their dominance. "It'll be one of our biggest challenges of the regular season," Dwyane Wade said.
"Anytime we play them (is a challenge), especially now, after losing to them at home. And bringing in Westbrook, you're bringing in a dynamic player at home, where they play very well. We're going to have to play as close to flawless as we can to beat this team."
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