Following a 130-124 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Monday night, Sacramento Kings guard Russell Westbrook provided some insight into why he didn’t re-sign with Denver during the offseason.
Speaking to reporters after his 26-point, 12-rebound, six-assist performance, Westbrook suggested that the Nuggets made it clear they didn’t want him to return to the team:
“The truth is that they didn’t want me back,” Westbrook said. “It ain’t up to me. … God always has a plan, be patient. Not up to me. They don’t want me, that’s okay. Somebody else do.”
Westbrook could have exercised his player option in order to force the Nuggets’ hand, but Westbrook noted that he decided against it when the organization advised him against doing so.
“They told me not to [exercise my option],” Westbrook said. “I don’t go anywhere I’m not wanted. I don’t need to.”
Kings-Nuggets Full Highlights
A likely future Hall of Famer, the 36-year-old Westbrook is a nine-time All-Star, two-time NBA scoring champion and one-time NBA MVP.
He also averaged a triple-double in four out of five seasons from 2016 to 2021 during stints with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Washington Wizards.
In more recent years, Westbrook has transitioned into a reserve role, as he primarily came off the bench in 2022-23 with the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, in 2023-24 with the Clippers and with the Nuggets last season.
Despite starting only 36 of the 75 games he played in for Denver in 2024-25, Westbrook put up solid numbers with 13.3 points per game on 44.9 percent shooting to go along with 6.1 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 1.4 steals.
As a result, Westbrook finished seventh in the NBA Sixth Man of the Year voting for a second consecutive year.
Westbrook was also a significant contributor in 13 playoff games, averaging 11.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists per contest. However, he struggled with his shot during the postseason, making just 39.1 percent of his field goal attempts.
While the core of Nikola Jokić, Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun is back for the Nuggets this season, they made several changes elsewhere on the roster.
That included acquiring forward Cameron Johnson in a trade that sent Michael Porter Jr. to the Brooklyn Nets, sending Dario Šarić to the Kings for center Jonas Valančiūnas, signing Tim Hardaway Jr. and bringing back Bruce Brown, who was part of Denver’s championship team in 2023.
Thus far, the moves have largely paid dividends, as the Nuggets are 4-2 and look to be among the top contenders in the Western Conference.
As for the Kings, they have struggled to a 2-5 start with Westbrook averaging 11.8 points, 4.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game.
The first clash between Westbrook and his former team went in Denver’s favor, but the two sides won’t have to wait long for a rematch, as the Kings are set to host the Nuggets on Nov. 11.
