Clippers' Russell Westbrook fractures hand, out indefinitely

Russell Westbrook, who settled into a role as a spark plug off the bench of his hometown Clippers, is out indefinitely after fracturing his hand on Friday night.

"I just feel bad for Russ right now," Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said postgame. "You never want to see a player get hurt…

"I don't know if he needs surgery or anything yet, but he's out right now, so just trying to figure it out."

The injury happened early in the second quarter when Westbrook reached around the Wizards' Jordan Poole going for a steal.

It's unclear how long Westbrook will be. That depends on where the fracture is and whether or not it will require surgery. However, it likely means Westbrook is out for most of the rest of the regular season, if not longer.

Westbrook had not missed a game for the Clippers this season and had become an important part of the rotation with his energy off the bench. Westbrook averaged 11.1 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game this season.

Bones Hyland, who has been frustrated with his lack of minutes after getting pushed down the depth chart following the James Harden trade, will now get an opportunity to be part of the rotation, as will Brandon Boston Jr. Hyland had two points on 1-of-7 shooting but with seven assists against the Wizards after Westbrook went down. Boston, in five minutes of action in garbage time, had seven points.

The Clippers went on to blow out the Wizards 140-115 behind 28 points from James Harden and 27 from Kawhi Leonard.