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OKLAHOMA CITY -- There were few indications before August that Russell Westbrook would be so willing to be the hero downtrodden Thunder fans needed.For years, the sometimes combustible Westbrook toiled in Kevin Durants shadow. He often was viewed as the talented, selfish player who was as likely to get in Durants way as he was to make a winning play. His flashy style seemed at odds with small-market Oklahoma City so when Durant, who seemingly was a better fit in OKC, left for rival Golden State, fear that Westbrook would bolt for a larger market increased.He didnt. He chose to re-sign with the Thunder and now that he has answered the call, its time to deliver.We know a few things about Russell at this point, Thunder general manager Sam Presti said. Hes going to bring his lunch pail every day. Hes going to compete. Hes going to inspire. Hes going to show great conviction and courage to his teammates, to the city, to the organization. And from there, we have to figure out how that comes together.That trek begins Wednesday in Philadelphia when Oklahoma City officially tips off the post-Durant era in its season opener against the 76ers.Westbrook is now the unquestioned leader of the Thunder and player folks behind the scenes knew -- the thoughtful, humble, giving man -- has more readily come to the surface. He has gone to great lengths to connect with Thunder fans in recent months.Among other things, he unveiled his new line of True Religion clothing near downtown Oklahoma City and he attended an Oklahoma home football game against Louisiana-Monroe wearing a custom-made Sooners jersey. When he was introduced to the crowd before the Thunders preseason home opener, he got the kinds of cheers normally reserved for a return from injury.Westbrook seems more at ease on the court, too. His preseason play seemed more effortless than electric, with an occasional flourish.I want the team to play how they want to play, Westbrook said. I mean, its not totally up to me how we play. You have to adjust to the team you have and adjust on a night-in, night-out basis on how you want to play. You want to play fast some nights and you want to play slow. I think it depends on the game, on the situation, who is on the floor.He is poised to put up astronomical numbers this season as he tries to keep the Thunder among the NBA elite.Last season Westbrook averaged 23.5 points and career highs of 10.4 assists and 7.8 rebounds. He posted 18 triple-doubles, the most for a player since Magic Johnson had 18 during the 1981-82 season. The two-time All-Star MVP and former scoring champion could do more damage without Durant, but the Thunder dont want too much pressure on him.I think we have to be able to play in a way thats not just relying on him to do everything and create every single shot, whether its him making the shot or making the play for another guy, Thunder forward Nick Collison said.Westbrook already has left an impression on his new backcourt mate Victor Oladipo, who was acquired in the trade that sent defensive enforcer Serge Ibaka to Orlando.After working with Russ, I can see the intensity in how serious he was about his craft, Oladipo said. But one thing that I realized that after guarding him for three years -- I can see why hes so effective at what he does. I definitely stole that from him, and Im going to take it and run as fast as I can with it.How Oladipo and the rest of the Thunder do in keeping up with Russell will determine how much success the team will have. Oklahoma City is no longer considered the team to beat in championship conversations, and thats fine with Westbrook. He said the team embraces the underdog role.I love it, he said. I love it, man. I think its a great challenge, not just for myself, but for our whole team. I think just from talking to the guys throughout the summer, they understand that. They want to win. They want to get better.---Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter (at)CliffBruntAP . John Henson Jersey . They hope to persuade the other team owners and commissioner Roger Goodell to put pressure on Redskins owner Daniel Snyder to drop the nickname they find offensive. "Given the way the meeting transpired," Ray Halbritter, an Oneida representative and leader of the "Change the Mascot Campaign," said Wednesday, "it became somewhat evident they were defending the continued use of the name. Giannis Antetokounmpo Jersey . 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With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season.Leeds chief executive Gary Hetherington has issued a rallying cry after the Rhinos fortunes hit a new low. Last years treble winners are bottom of Super League after 13 of the 23 rounds of the regular season and at the weekend crashed out of the Challenge Cup at the first hurdle with a 36-22 defeat to Huddersfield.However, Hetherington has attempted to placate disgruntled fans by sending them a letter in which he dismissed talk of a crisis, insisted there would be no panic measures to turn around the teams fortunes and stated a top-eight finish remains the target. Unless you are a very long-standing fan, this experience is something new to us all as we find ourselves in a tough position and one that is in complete contrast to this time last year, Hetherington wrote.As I am sure you know, this is what can happen in professional team sport and most clubs in this situation would be in crisis with low morale, a blame culture and a frenzy to make wholesale changes throughout the organisation. But thats not the case here! Leeds are bottom of the Super League after 13 rounds of the competition Dont get me wrong, we are hurting very badly and I see it every day with the players and coaching staff at training and all our staff at Headingley, but we know the reasons for our plight and no one could have envisaged what has happened over the past few monthss.ddddddddddddAnd so I find myself surrounded not by pessimists but by an incredibly energised and positive group of players, coaches and staff who are all working incredibly hard to achieve new and different goals. Our first and most immediate goal is to climb the Super League table and then make the top eight by round 23. Leeds take on Castleford on Thursday Leeds, who face a crucial derby with Castleford on Thursday - live on Sky Sports 3 - have been severely affected by the loss of their training facilities at Kirkstall, which were swept away by the Boxing Day floods.They have also been depleted by a series of injuries to key players, which came on top of the departure of Kevin Sinfield, Jamie Peacock and Kylie Leuluai at the end of their treble-winning season in October. But Hetherington believes the future remains bright, pointing to a sustainable business, plans to redevelop Headingley in conjunction with Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the success of the Leeds Rhinos Foundation,I genuinely believe we can all look to some exciting times ahead, he added. We have a vision for the club and a set of values which underpin all we do. 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