Aaron Gordon doesn’t want the facts about Russell Westbrook to be forgotten.
The Denver Nuggets locker room was in a sullen mood after their narrow Game 5 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Nuggets now travel back for what could be their last home game of these playoffs, knowing they have to win to keep their hopes of a championship alive.
Russell Westbrook is having to play against the team that drafted and developed him. And that seems to be affecting his play.
But there was a recent report about Russell Westbrook that echoed the rumors we heard about him since his time with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
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Russell Westbrook is immature – Anon. Nuggets source
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne recently did a report about the Denver Nuggets during this chaotic playoff run in the aftermath of Michael Malone’s firing.
One of the anecdotes she shared was that of a verbal confrontation between Russell Westbrook and Aaron Gordon. One anonymous Nuggets source called Westbrook immature when talking about the situation.
“Minutes after the Nuggets lost Game 2 of their first-round series against the Clippers, Adelman had a problem.”
“While he’d been at the postgame lectern, there’d been a heated discussion between Westbrook and Gordon in the locker room, multiple sources told ESPN.”
“Gordon had challenged Westbrook about his attitude. Outside the locker room, one player relayed why Gordon might’ve done so. ‘He’s so immature,’ he said of Westbrook.”
Reports like these, especially during a playoff run, can cause discord in the locker room. So Aaron Gordon quickly came out to shut it down.
Speaking after Game 5 of the Nuggets-Thunder series, Aaron Gordon addressed the report from Shelburne. He defended Westbrook as being a great teammate and person, and said these disagreements are commonplace.
“I really don’t feel like talking about the game. Earlier, I caught wind of an article that came out about Russell Westbrook and our locker room after Game 2, which was a completely arbitrary article.”
“It was pointless and unnecessary by whoever it was that put it out.
“Russ is one of the most talented basketball players who has ever played the game of basketball.”
“Quite frankly, he has been great for us all year long. We’re brothers. We spend more time with our team than we do with our own families. Of course, there’s going to be disagreements.”
“That conversation wasn’t for anybody other than our own group and the internal workings of our locker room. That article is so far from the truth.”
“Russ has been amazing for us. Not only is he a great basketball player, but he’s an even better human being.
“He’s going to continue to be great for us and make a huge impact, and he’s going to help us win these next two games.
Gordon has long made it clear how fond he is of Westbrook. In fact, Gordon recently promised to help Westbrook win a championship. So it’s great to see him shut this narrative down right before it can get too big.