Houston Rockets

Did Rockets GM Daryl Morey take a veiled shot at Russell Westbrook ahead of Game 2?

Published Apr. 19, 2017 3:40 p.m. ET

Nunzio Ingrassia

It’s a theory some are using to detract from Russell Westbrook’s MVP credentials, and it appears Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey is on board with the idea that Westbrook's teammates passed up on rebounds during the regular season to allow him to pad his stats and achieve the mythical triple-double average.

Morey took the veiled shot when he defended former Rockets forward Matt Bullard on Wednesday. Bullard's name was sarcastically attached to an award handed out by an analytics blog celebrating bigs who fail to rebound.

https://twitter.com/dmorey/status/854697753208860672

Bullard said that Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon told him to stay away from potential rebounds in order to allow the Hall of Fame center to grab them.

https://twitter.com/bull50/status/854732878034472960

This prompted Morey to reference “other superstars” who supposedly do the same thing.

https://twitter.com/dmorey/status/854733059203182593

Morey has been campaigning for his player – guard James Harden – to get the nod for MVP. Westbrook, who became the second player in NBA history to average a triple-double, and Harden are believed to be the two frontrunners for the award that will be announced June 26 as part of the NBA’s first-ever awards show.

The Rockets host the Thunder in Game 2 of their first-round series Wednesday.