Handing out Game Balls from Thunder's second game against Wizards

Darius Bazley stayed hot on Friday night, pulling off yet another 20-point game and doing it much more efficiently than he has at other points this season. Leading the way offensively, he continues to turn a corner in his second season.

Oklahoma City rookie Aleksej Pokusevski returned to the lineup after leaving Wednesday's game with a non-COVID illness and finished with eight points, three rebounds, two steals and one block. It seems at least early on in his career, the scoring will be inconsistent, but he helps the team in so many other ways on both ends of the floor.

Former Thunder Russell Westbrook earned yet another triple-double against his old team, producing 37 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in 37 minutes. Alongside Bradley Beal, Westbrook has led the Wizards to seven-straight wins down the stretch in the battle for playoff positioning.

With Gabriel Deck arriving in Oklahoma City, expect to see him get on-court action over the course of the next week. For now, let's give out game balls for OKC's 129-109 loss to Washington on Friday night.

Game Ball: Theo Maledon

Theo Maledon, Russell Westbrook — Brad Mills / USA TODAY Sports

Maledon is still just 19-years-old, but the rookie continues to play beyond his years. When he takes the floor, everything looks easy with his high level of basketball IQ and comfortability with the game overall. In Friday's game against the Wizards he was extremely efficient from the floor, finishing with 20 points on just 11 shots.

He kept the flow of the offense consistent as the starting point guard, dishing out eight assists to teammates to generate even more points. At 6-foot-4, Maledon has the ideal height of a modern NBA point guard. While it's unclear if his ceiling is being a long-term starter or just a quality backup guard on a playoff team, he's shown flashes of being a high-level contributor in his 37 starts this season.

Lu Dort among NBA's best sophomores

Game Ball: Darius Bazley

Darius Bazley, Washington Wizards — Alonzo Adams / USA TODAY Sports

Since returning to the court following his fractured scapula, Bazley has taken his game to a new level. For starters, he's been tasked defensively with guarding opposing teams' better players, including Washington's Westbrook and Indiana's Caris LeVert most recently. With his long frame, Bazley is beginning to emerge as an effective two-way player at age 20. In Friday's game specifically, he ended the night with six steals.

Offensively he's been even better, notching his third-straight 20-point game. While he wasn't able to set a new career-high in points like he did when the Thunder and Wizards faced off Monday night, he finished with 20 points to go along with six rebounds. In the eight games since returning from injury, Bazley has averaged 19.1 points and 6.9 rebounds per contest.

Add us as a preferred source on Google