Criticism against a 14-year veteran, nine-time All-Star, and former league MVP is sometimes valid, but death threats—regardless of the player’s stature—are never ok.
Russell Westbrook and his wife, Nina, have shared that that’s exactly what they’re dealing with. Nina went to social media to reveal the “death threats” her family has received during Westbrook’s first season in Los Angeles.
The two say they’re speaking out on behalf of their three children: 4-year-old Noah and twin 3-year-old daughters, Jordyn and Skye.
“I 100% stand behind my wife and how she’s feeling,” Westbrook said Monday. “When it comes to basketball, I don’t mind the criticism of missing and making shots. But the moment it becomes where my name is getting shamed, it becomes an issue.
“I’ve kind of let it go in the past because it never really bothered me. But it really kind of hit me the other day. Me and my wife were at teacher-parent conferences for my son. And the teacher told me, ‘Noah, he’s so proud of his last name. He writes it everywhere. He writes it on everything. He tells everybody and walks around and says, ‘I’m Westbrook.’ And I kind of sat there in shock, and it hit me, like, ‘Damn. I can no longer allow people [to besmirch my name].’”
Fair or foul, Westbrook has served as the scapegoat for the Lakers’ struggles this year. He’s the highest-paid player on the team ($44 million), though his production hasn’t shown it: he’s averaging 18.1 points on 43.4% shooting, 28.4% from three-point range, and 67% from the foul line, in addition to 7.6 rebounds, 7.2 assists, and 4 turnovers per.
“’Westbrick,’ for example, to me, is now shaming,” he said, referring to a common heckle he hears. “It’s shaming my name, my legacy for my kids. It’s a name that means, not just to me, but to my wife, to my mom, my dad, the ones that kind of paved the way for me.”
“A lot of times, I let it slide,” he added. “But now it’s time to put a stop to that and put it on notice. There’s a difference. We need to make sure it’s understood. And every time I do hear it now, I will make sure that I address it and make sure I nip that in the bud.”
The heckling has even caused his family to stop coming to games.
“It affects them even going to games,” Westbrook said. “Like, I don’t even want to bring my kids to the game because I don’t want them to hear people calling their dad nicknames and other names for no reason because he’s playing the game that he loves. And it’s gotten so bad where my family don’t even want to go to home games, to any game … and it’s just super unfortunate, man. And it’s super upsetting to me.
“I’m at a point where I’m going to continue to address it. It’s just unfortunate.”
