After one season with the Denver Nuggets, Russell Westbrook opted out of his contract to become a free agent. Westbrook signed a one-year deal with the Sacramento Kings less than a week before the start of the season.
The former MVP returned to the Ball Arena in Denver on Monday to face his former team. He finished with 26 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, but the Kings suffered a close 130-124 loss.
Speaking to Bennett Durando of The Denver Post after the game, Westbrook revealed the real reason why he didn’t return to the Nuggets. The franchise wanted him to opt out of his contract, which he obliged because he didn’t want to stay where he wasn’t wanted.
“The truth is that they didn’t want me back. It ain’t up to me. God always has a plan. Be patient. Not up to me. They don’t want me. That’s OK. Somebody else do,” Westbrook said.
ESPN’s Marc J. Spears reported on “NBA Today” in early July that Westbrook opted out of his contract because he wanted to be closer to his family in Los Angeles.
Regardless of what really happened, Westbrook looked happy before the game. He caught up with some of his former teammates, such as Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon.
Jokic Praises Westbrook After Nuggets Win
After the Denver Nuggets added Russell Westbrook last offseason, some people thought it was a bad fit. However, Westbrook proved that he still has a lot left in the tank. He had tremendous chemistry with Nikola Jokic, though there were still some head-scratching moments throughout the season.
They were one win away from eliminating the Oklahoma City Thunder in the playoffs, so it was a successful partnership in a way. Now that Westbrook is on another team, Jokic still has praise for his former teammate following the Nuggets’ win over the Kings.
“It’s always good to see Russ. We had great chemistry last year, even for a short time. He’s a Hall of Famer, and it’s always nice to see him on the court,” Jokic said, via Basketball Sphere.
Jokic was fantastic in the Nuggets’ victory, putting up 34 points, seven rebounds, 14 assists, four steals and two blocks. He had just one turnover, making four 3-point shots and going 14-for-22 from the field. The Nuggets improved to 4-2 for the season.
Kendrick Perkins Reveals Confrontational Texts From Westbrook’s Wife
Speaking on the “Out The Mud” podcast recently, former NBA player and current ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins revealed that Russell Westbrook’s wife confronted him via text messages. Nina Westbrook was unhappy with the way Perkins spoke about her husband on national television and questioned his legacy.
“I get a text from Russ’ wife. So as I get off, I look, I’m like, damn. His wife, not him. I mean (it’s) like six paragraphs. She texted me so much, that s**t wasn’t even in the text form no more. That s**t had broken up into like pages,” Perkins said, via Fadeaway World.
It even reached a point where Perkins’ wife, Vanity, responded to Nina, and it escalated even more. Perk and Russ were teammates for five seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder and at one point considered each other friends.
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