Dallas tried to crack Russell Westbrook and instead watched his game hit a new level

Russell Westbrook may be the most ferociously emotional player in the NBA. He’s the basketball version of a howling pressure cooker on the stove. Most of the time, it settles and produces something fantastic. Occasionally, though, it leaves you needing a kitchen remodel.

The Mavericks made a collective effort to rile up Westbrook into the danger zone, and all it got them was a ticket home for the rest of the playoffs. It was a desperate move by a desperate team that had little chance defensively to stop Westbrook and the Thunder. They could take a shot, however unlikely, at throwing him off his game. He was going to trash their defense with or without the extra motivation, so why not try.

Westbrook plays like he’s looking to fight someone -- anyone really -- and the basketball just gets in the way. Most of the time, he bottles that emotion into an onslaught on the rim and the opposing team. Sometimes, however, it can go the other way. He gets a little too emotional, or things go bad and the Thunder fall out of rhythm. That’s when the rumors of a lack of chemistry and locker room issues start.

If you’re the opposing team, you hope Westbrook gets to that level of emotion. It’s your best shot of winning. But in this series, Westbrook proved poking the bear is not the way to get there.

Here is a brief recap of some of the tactics the Mavericks used to get under Westbrook’s skin:

And here is how Westbrook responded:

26.0 points, 11.2 assists and 7.2 rebounds per game.

That betters his career playoff averages of 24.1 points, 6.7 assists and 6.0 rebounds coming into the series. The first dancing incident occurred before Game 2, the only game Dallas won. If the goal was to rile up Westbrook to the point his game suffered from there, it didn’t work. In the final three games of the series, Westbrook averaged 29 points, 13.0 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game. The Mavericks poked the bear, then got mauled.

Cuban’s comments prior to Game 5 were especially interesting. Maybe he was just sharing his honest opinion or pandering to the media to give them a soundbite. Or, maybe he was making a slight at Westbrook, hoping Russell would try to prove him wrong and throw off the Thunder’s offense with an alpha dog attack. Coaxing Westbrook into forcing things could be a recipe for success. Instead, Westbrook finished the Mavericks’ season with a performance of 36 points, 9 assists and 12 rebounds on 23 shots. Whatever Dallas was trying to do, it backfired.

Russell Westbrook may not be the king, but he proved if you come at him, you best not miss.