Russell Westbrook Receives a Loud Standing Ovation From Thunder Fans

Russell Westbrook left Oklahoma City, but the city still adores him years later. Fans of the home team rarely give a player on the other side a standing ovation, especially during the NBA playoffs. However, there is an exemption when Russell Westbrook is the player and the Oklahoma City Thunder are the home club.

After being chosen fourth overall by the Thunder in the 2008 NBA Draft, Westbrook played for them for the first 11 years of his career. Thunder supporters will always be grateful to Westbrook for making the club entertaining and thrilling to watch, even though he was unable to bring an NBA championship to Oklahoma City.

Russell Westbrook talks about his reception

As a result, the Paycom Center gave their former player a standing ovation when Westbrook arrived for Monday night’s Game 1 of the Thunder vs. his Denver Nuggets conference semifinal series. In the NBA, it was undoubtedly an uncommon sight.

Westbrook subtly disparaged his previous fan base in response to a question about how noisy the Paycom Center was on Monday night.

He stated: “It was loud tonight but it was louder when we was here,”

“Like I’ve always said, I’m truly grateful and indebted to the fans here. They gave me a chance. They believed in me when I was a little, young teenager,”

“But the reason why they love me is my competitive nature, competitive spirit. I’m gonna do that for my team. Love is always there.”

By the conclusion of the game, Denver rallied and won 121-119 thanks to a three-pointer from Aaron Gordon in the last seconds, leaving the Thunder supporters likely feeling torn between Westbrook and the Nuggets. Thunder supporters were left stunned by the stunning revelation.

The post Russell Westbrook Receives a Loud Standing Ovation From Thunder Fans appeared first on BlackSportsOnline.