NBA Champion Shares Harsh Truth About Russell Westbrook

Some less than favorable words about Russell Westbrook.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Russell Westbrook is arguably the most gifted athlete in NBA history. However, he wasn't necessarily the toughest player to guard. In fact, one of the greatest defenders of all-time believes that Westbrook was predictable.

In an interview with Logan Murdock of The Ringer, Tony Allen revealed what it was like having to defend Russell Westbrook. Surprisingly, Allen's answer didn't make Westbrook look that great.

"Westbrook was so predictable,” Allen said. “When the play was for somebody else, he wouldn’t give it his all. When the play was for him, you could tell, he was going 100 miles per hour on the cut, he going 100 miles per hour and pushing the ball.”

When Allen was defending Westbrook, it was during the era when Westbrook and Kevin Durant were teammates on the Oklahoma City Thunder. In 2013, the Grizzlies beat the Thunder 4-1 in the second round. In 2014, the Thunder beat the Grizzlies 4-3 in the first round. It was a series in which Allen had to learn how to guard both Westbrook and Durant.

“Like, OK, now this is time for me to be physical," Allen said about Durant. "I know they coming to Durant. … [Westbrook] would float a ball in the air to try to throw it to him while KD got his hand in the post. I’m getting a steal on that every time.”

Tony Allen is arguably the most underrated defender of all-time. He's cited for being the the toughest defender by legendary athletes like Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant, but has never won a Defensive Player of the Year award. These quotes show you why he was so hard to get around.

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