Miami Heat Player Makes Huge Russell Westbrook Statement

LA Clippers star Russell Westbrook is one of the NBA's all-time greats

Joey Linn | Jun 9, 2024

Feb 4, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; LA Clippers guard Russell Westbrook (0) attempts to dunk the basketball against the Miami Heat during the fourth quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

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LA Clippers star Russell Westbrook has reached the point in his career where many young opponents grew up idolizing him. In the 2023-24 season opener, Westbrook and the Clippers faced Portland Trail Blazers rookie Scoot Henderson in his NBA debut. Henderson is one of those players who grew up a big Westbrook fan, which made that game really special.

Henderson is not the only young NBA player who grew up a big Westbrook fan, as Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic recently revealed to HoopsHype that Westbrook was his favorite player growing up.

"Talking basketball, probably Michael Jordan," Jovic told HoopsHype when asked who his basketball GOAT is. "MJ and the guy I always looked when I was growing up gotta be Russell Westbrook. He was the one who was playing every single game like it was his last one and that’s something I always loved."

Jovic just turned 21 years old, so he was right around 14 years old when Westbrook won the MVP award in 2017. Having just finished his second NBA season, Jovic has played 61 career games since being selected 27th overall by the Heat in 2022.

As previously mentioned, Jovic is just one of several young NBA players who grew up watching Westbrook, as his peak with the OKC Thunder is truly unlike anything else in basketball history.

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JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.

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