Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green had some harsh things to say about NBA fans and how they reacted to Russell Westbrook’s retirement announcement.
In the latest episode of his podcast, “The Draymond Green Show,” Green called out NBA fans for spending the last decade criticizing Westbrook for how he played the game. Green noted that everyone seemed to change their opinion as soon as Westbrook retired.
“Basketball fans suck, because for the last eight to ten years, all this guy has heard is how bad he sucks, how he don’t shoot it well, how he stat padding, how he mess up teams, ‘Westbrick,'” Green said. “The moment he step aside, ‘Ahh man, y’all did Russ wrong, can’t tell me he couldn’t be on a team, how he played the game, gonna miss him.’ All these great, beautiful things.
“It’s like when somebody dies. Everybody’s like, ‘Ah, man, best dude ever, best woman ever. Love ’em. Would give the shirt off their back.’ Everybody’s got all these great things to say, but when that person was living, you don’t show that love. Why is it that he has to announce his retirement unexpectedly to finally see the love that he deserves?”
Draymond responds to the reaction to Russell Westbrook's retirement
— The Draymond Green Show (@DraymondShow) August 14, 2026
“Basketball fans suck, because for the last 8 to 10 years, all this guy has heard is how bad he sucks, how he don’t shoot it well, how he stat padding, how he mess up teams, 'Westbrick'… and the moment he step… pic.twitter.com/AWXt0aShg6
Westbrook undoubtedly drew his share of criticism in the last part of his career, when he was much less effective than he was in his prime. The version of Westbrook most will ultimately remember is the one that starred for Oklahoma City, however. There is a rather pronounced difference between those two phases of Westbrook’s career.
It is true, however, that Westbrook is getting a lot of praise that he absolutely had not been getting before his retirement announcement. There is something to be said for the fact that nostalgia is a powerful thing, and people have been thinking a lot more about Westbrook’s early career than they were before his announcement.
Westbrook retires as a nine-time All-Star and also won an MVP award during his career. At the same time, he did spend the last five years of his career bouncing from team to team and struggling to find an ideal fit.
