Westbrook, Paul turn in vintage performances Tuesday

The Nuggets and Spurs both took the floor Tuesday night knowing they’d be without their stars. For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokić missed his third straight game as he tends to a personal matter. And for the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama’s knee injury kept him sidelined. 
 And yet, both the Nuggets and the Spurs banked impressive victories to help their team in Emirates NBA Cup Group Play.
It was a historic night for Russell Westbrook as he achieved his 200th career triple-double and his first of the season. Westbrook picked his spots and scored 12 points. When the shots weren’t falling, he set up his teammates, leading to a season-high 14 assists. He also collected 10 rebounds in his 32 minutes off the bench to give the Nuggets the spark they needed.
Chris Paul was excellent in his own right for the Spurs. 
With Wembanyama sidelined, the Spurs were largely counted out against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Paul paid no attention to that as he turned in another strong performance, posting 14 points and 11 assists as the Spurs notched the win to improve to 1-1 in Group Play. Paul has upped his assist average from 6.8 last season with the Warriors to 8.5 in his first year with the Spurs, good enough for an eighth-place tie with Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton. 
Though both veterans have passed the proverbial torches to the younger faces of their respective franchises, Tuesday night showed that both Westbrook and Paul can still get it done when called upon.