On Tuesday, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne came out with a piece on Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook, and there were parts in the article where the former MVP wasn’t portrayed in a positive manner.
For example, Shelburne reported that Westbrook got into a verbal altercation with forward Aaron Gordon after the team dropped Game 2 of its first-round series against the Los Angeles Clippers. Shelburne reported that Gordon had challenged Westbrook about his attitude.
While there were certainly positive elements to the piece, the overall theme was that the Nuggets’ hopes may hinge on a “high-variance, volatile player” in Westbrook.
Westbrook’s wife Nina took issue with what Shelburne wrote about her husband, as she took to Instagram and called out the ESPN reporter for the article. She also accused Shelburne of lying but wasn’t specific about where in the piece she lied.
Russell Westbrook is no longer a superstar player or nightly triple-double threat, but he has settled into a valuable complementary role with the Nuggets as he navigates the late stages of his NBA career.
He provided scoring, rebounding and playmaking in the regular season — the veteran averaged the second-most assists per game of any Nugget behind big man Nikola Jokic — and has been a key piece in the 2025 NBA Playoffs.
His scoring average has improved slightly compared to the regular season, as he’s averaging 13.4 points per game in 10 appearances and zero starts thus far in these playoffs. His scoring efficiency has left a bit to be desired, but he’s never been super efficient at putting the ball through the net.
The Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder will face off in Tuesday’s Game 5 with their second-round series tied at two games apiece, and Russell Westbrook will attempt to put together a bounce-back performance in that contest. In Denver’s Game 4 loss on Sunday, he shot just 2-of-12 from the field and even fouled out of the game.
It should be interesting to find out whether Shelburne will publicly respond to the comments regarding the article she wrote in the near future. But Russell Westbrook has other things to worry about, as the winner of Game 5 could very well go on to advance to the Western Conference Finals.
