Russell Westbrook’s season is over, and life’s not fair

The war is over. The yelling of the coaches, the panting of the players and the squeaking of shoes on the court are all silent now. The dust has settled.

In the center of the rubble stands an exhausted Russell Westbrook. He won the scoring title, but could only describe it with an expletive. That’s barely a consolation prize for a man who damn near willed the Oklahoma City Thunder to the playoffs on his own. Winning the final game against the Minnesota Timberwolves was nothing more than a Pyrrhic victory.

With the season on the line, Westbrook transcended himself once again. In the first quarter alone, the hulking guard scored 23 points, his most-ever in a quarter of play and a Thunder record. He effectively won the scoring title before half of the fans were back from the concession stands. He was a man on a mission. Westbrook went on to score 34 points in the half (also a Thunder record). It was so ridiculous that even Kevin Durant was flabbergasted on Twitter.

None of this is new, of course. Not Durant being his biggest cheerleader. Not Westbrook making the incredible look ordinary. Not even the Thunder winning the battle, but losing the war. It just proved to be the perfect microcosm of their weird, thrilling season.

All Westbrook did was deliver some of the most exciting performances the NBA has ever seen. Triple-double after triple-double, Berserker-style dunks that threatened to shatter the rim, Vine after Vine of turning some poor defender into an abused victim. Steals. Blocks. Game after game where he dragged his undermanned team by his teeth to the finish line. He’s crafted one of the most unforgettable seasons of not only a basketball player, but an athlete. His reward: A trip to the lottery.

We don’t know what comes next. There will be talk of early-season injuries that doomed the Thunder from the start. Intelligent people will look at some of the coaching decisions Scott Brooks made and wonder if Westbrook’s team would’ve had a better chance with someone else in charge. We’ll also lament the absence of Kevin Durant, the reigning MVP who was injured at the beginning and end of the season.

Those handicaps added to Westbrook’s mystique. It’s absurd that Westbrook did all this in one year, but it’s even more absurd that he did it without Durant, who isn’t just a sidekick, he’s the current Most Valuable Player of the NBA. If he were healthy, he would have challenged for the scoring title again (he’s only won four out of the last five) and made another MVP push. This wasn’t a case of Batman being without Robin. This was Superman not having Batman to fight by his side. There was also the loss of Serge Ibaka, only one of the best defensive players in the league.

No one would have blamed Westbrook if he felt powerless after losing those two. Some even wrote the Thunder out of playoff contention at that point. But Westbrook has never been one to listen to the world. He held his head high and consequently tore through every defense and expectation put before him.

The number that best sums his year up is 11, as in the number of triple-doubles. Only two players in the last 20 seasons -- Jason Kidd (twice) and Grant Hill -- had more triple doubles in a season, but both played a full year. Westbrook missed 15 games. Then, toss in a 30-plus point streak during that run that is only bested by one Michael Jordan. Westbrook led the league in scoring, was third in assists, second in steals and led all guards in rebounding. The man was a human highlight reel.

This was the player we all secretly wanted Westbrook to be. Once the world accepted that being a prototypical point guard was far too limiting for a player with Westbrook’s unique abilities, they finally began to appreciate him. And once he realized how to use his powers -- how to analyze the defensive alignment at half court before barreling down defenders, how to manage his reactions in order to encourage his colleagues, how to ultimately become the leader they needed -- there was no stopping him.

But just as the numerous injuries sealed OKC’s fate, so, too, was Westbrook’s objective ultimately out of his hands. He did everything humanely possible against the Wolves to give his team a fighting chance, and that’s all he could do. His playoffs future was in the hands of the San Antonio Spurs and the hope that another outrageous talent, Anthony Davis, would let his chance slip. He didn’t.

It seems apt and almost mythical that it would happen that way. This was the same Anthony Davis that made a double-clutch game-winning three-pointer over Westbrook’s outstretched hand two and a half months ago, giving the Pelicans the tiebreaker edge that ultimately made the difference in the race for the No. 8 seed. It also seems a devious plot by the Spurs to once again ruin Westbrook.

In the end, he deserved more. It seems downright cruel to imagine him watching at home rather than terrorizing the Warriors.

Let’s make sure that doesn’t sully Westbrook’s remarkable season. It will be discussed, assessed and debated in barbershops, in bars and in press rooms for years to come. It was everything the basketball world could ask for and more.

Thank you, Russ.