No Kevin Durant in the second half, no problem for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City pulled away from the Washington on Tuesday, picking up a 125-101 win despite Durant sitting out the second half with a left hamstring strain.
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Russell Westbrook's triple-double (22 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists) coupled with a superb offensive effort from Serge Ibaka (23 points on 9-of-15 shooting) was enough to carry the Thunder past the Wizards.
Without Durant, the Thunder will have to fight just to grab a playoff spot. With Durant, the Thunder are a title contender. Durant is scoring at a prolific pace again, averaging 30 points and shooting better than 50 percent from the field this season.
It will be interesting to see if the Thunder coaching staff continue to play him more than 37 minutes a game or scale him back whenever he does return.
Injuries flaring up
Durant isn't the only notable player banged up.
Kobe Bryant didn't play in the Lakers' game Tuesday against Miami, and it doesn't look like he'll suit up Wednesday against the Magic.
A hip contusion for Pelicans forward Anthony Davis may keep him out against the Hawks on Wednesday.
Bucks forward Jabari Parker doesn't plan on playing against the Nuggets on Wednesday.
Tweet of the night
Mark Cuban isn't done being petty when it comes to DeAndre Jordan.
Mark Cuban said he saved all his text messages from DeAndre Jordan and might detail them all at a later date.
— Ben Bolch (@latbbolch) November 11, 2015Stud of the night
LeBron James did LeBron James things in the fourth quarter, and the Jazz had no answers. Overall, James scored 31 points (17 in the fourth) to go with seven rebounds and eight assists.
Dud of the night
John Wall struggled against Westbrook and the Thunder, notching just nine points and five assists in the Wizards' loss.
Looking ahead (all times Eastern)
Knicks (4-4) at Hornets (3-4), 7 p.m.: The Knicks have won two in a row and have a good chance to stretch that streak against an inconsistent Hornets team.
Warriors (8-0) at Grizzlies (3-5), 8 p.m.: The Warriors hope to remain perfect when they face off against the struggling Grizzlies, who acquired Mario Chalmers via trade Tuesday.