Russell Westbrook gave fans one of the best regular season performances back during his time with the Oklahoma City Thunder. ‘Brodie’ averaged a triple-double for an entire year, capping it off with MVP honors in the end. He has since surpassed NBA legend Oscar Roberston on the all-time triple-double list. But having gone through that experience, Big O made sure to warn Westbrook of the same fans who were cheering him on.
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The Sacramento Kings legend made an appearance on the All The Smoke podcast. Talking to hosts Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Robertson revealed what exactly he warned Brodie about.
“We were in a room by ourselves talking. I said, ‘I’m happy for you but man, they’re gonna turn on you…They’re gonna turn on you because they’re gonna expect you to do this every night. And even if you do it and don’t win, they’re gonna blame you. They’re gonna blame you, they’re not gonna blame anybody else’…And they did.”
Robertson initially addressed how unfortunate things have gotten for Brodie. He felt that Westbrook was a valuable asset to any team in the league, but when it came to pinning the blame, Russ got the bitter end of it.
“It’s unfortunate for Westbrook that they’re doing some of the things to him. I think the guy is very valuable to any team. But somehow, they wanna blame somebody. Why blame him? The man, the guy that’s effective for you. I mean, he kept the franchise in Oklahoma going for years.”
Westbrook spent the first 11 years of his career with Oklahoma City. He gave the Thunder franchise his all. But since his days with OKC, Russ hasn’t been able to find a home for more than a couple of years. And this was something Robertson touched upon during this podcast as well as in an interview a month ago.
The unjust hate towards Westbrook
The Big O sat down with Sports Illustrated last month, where he came forward with the same concern regarding Westbrook. Robertson felt that no matter what he did, the former league MVP always ended up being blamed.
“For some strange reason, I don’t know why they want to keep blaming everything that happens on him. When he plays he is dynamic, he gives the team a spark. Then all of a sudden they don’t care for him, they don’t want him.”
‘Mr. Triple-Double’ was brought onto the Lakers roster a few years ago. And what many tend to forget is the fact that in his first season with the team, Westbrook was the one that held the ground for LA when LeBron James and Anthony Davis missed substantial time due to injuries.
But as soon as LeBron and AD were back in the lineup for the next season, Westbrook instantly became the scapegoat of the team.
Back in 2022, Russell revealed all the hate and criticism he as well as his family had received during his time with the Lakers. Talking to LakerNation, Brodie said, “My family has reached a point to where it’s really weighing on them and it’s very unfortunate just for me personally because this is just a game.”
“This is not the end-all, be-all, and when it comes to basketball. I don’t mind the criticism of missing and making shots, but the moment where it becomes my name getting shamed, it becomes an issue.”
The 9x All-Star will now be joining the Denver Nuggets this season in the hopes of helping the team get another shot at a title.
