Russell Westbrook has faced a new wave of criticism after the Los Angeles Lakers traded him to the Utah Jazz in a three-team deal, and his wife is once again fed up with the negativity.
Westbrook’s wife, Nina Westbrook, took to social media on Thursday to blast some of the reports that have surfaced since her husband was traded. She left an Instagram comment on a post highlighting a report from ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, who said the Lakers wanted to “remove a vampire from the locker room” when they traded Westbrook.
Nina called the report “just sick.” She also said she and Russell have children in school who have to “listen to their peers repeat the nasty things that you guys say on television about their father.” Nina added that she will now have to explain to her 5-year-old that his father is not an actual vampire.
You can see Nina’s Instagram comment and the video of McMenamin’s report below:
"As one source told me, 'You remove a vampire from the locker room.' That meaning a vampire sucks the blood out of the locker room."
How ESPN's Dave McMenamin described the Lakers moving on from Russell Westbrook, per his source.pic.twitter.com/bDWqbxvQbP
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) February 10, 2023
Obviously, no one was saying Westbrook is a literal vampire. McMenamin was almost certainly using the term the way Nick Saban has used it. The Alabama coach has said in the past that he calls players who do not buy into his program “energy vampires” because they suck up everyone’s time and energy by not doing what they are supposed to do.
Nina has never been shy about defending Russell against criticism from the media. You may recall last year when she sounded off about an unflattering nickname that was created for the star point guard.
