Reacting to Westbrook's Temper-Tantrum

The focus of Thursday night's game between the Thunder and Grizzlies was shifted from a convincing Thunder victory to the temper-tantrum of Russel Westbrook midway in the 3rd quarter. Though we have not seen much of Westbrook's childish side this year, he has been known in the past to have trouble handling his emotions.

The cause of Westbrook's outburst was when Westbrook had his defender posted up in the paint, and Thabo Sefolosha made a cut that brought an extra defender to double-up on Westbrook, ultimately leading to a rare 5-second violation call.

Coach Scott Brooks was forced to bench the ill-tempered Westbrook, which led to him exploding and tossing a chair on his way to the locker room. When he returned to the game he continued to pout on the bench for the remainder of the 3rd quarter.

It seems strange that such a small mistake from Sefolosha would cause such a meltdown from Westbrook, forcing him to head to the locker room to gather his emotions. It leaves many Thunder fans scratching their heads and wondering if this is something that could hurt the Thunder down the stretch.

My initial reaction was to stick up for Westbrook. He is known to play with his emotions on his sleeve so I was not very surprised by the events that unfolded.

Last year the Thunder would rely on James Harden in times like this. He would be able to take over the game in a cool and controlled manner while Westbrook cooled off on the bench.

With the absence of Harden, it is now time for Westbrook to mature. The Thunder need him down the stretch of games, and can not afford this type of outburst during the playoffs.

Westbrook's maturity may need to be pushed by the likes of Kevin Durant and coach Scott Brooks, both of whom down-played the incident last night in post-game interviews.