If Russell Westbrook is upset about missing out on a starting spot in the All-Star Game, he isn’t showing it.
Westbrook downplayed the snub after he failed to overcome Stephen Curry and James Harden in the balloting, with the Thunder guard saying there was a lot else more important.
“It is what it is,” Westbrook said Friday, via ESPN. “That’s the nature of the business, the game. I just play. I don’t play for All-Star bids. I play to win championships and every night I compete at a high level, and it’ll work out.
“I just continue doing what I’m doing and play the game the right way and everything else will work out.”
Westbrook did win in the media and player votes, but that didn’t console him much.
“(Winning the players’ vote) doesn’t change anything for me,” Westbrook said. “It’s a great honor … and being an All-Star is something you don’t take for granted.
“But like I said, I don’t play to play in the All-Star (Game) … I play to become a better player and to win championships.”
Ultimately, Westbrook lost out because he finished third in the fan vote, which served as the tiebreaker. That spurred some of his fellow athletes to back him. He’ll still end up at the game, but he’s not lying that championships are clearly the priority.
