Amazingly enough, the Nuggets played one of their better games of the entire season on Wednesday night, as they destroyed the Clippers 126-103. What made it such an amazing performance was the absence of Nikola Jokic, who missed his second straight game with an illness, and the fact that Denver was on a back-to-back after falling to the Celtics on Tuesday night.
The team shot the ball well and was locked in on the defensive end. They dominated from the outset and showcased a well-balanced attack with six different players in double figures. But the show-stealing moment from this game came courtesy of Russell Westbrook, just over seven minutes into the game.
Westbrook came to the Nuggets in the offseason as a free agent after spending the last two seasons in LA playing for the Clippers. With four minutes and change left in the first quarter, Russ and his former teammate, Ivica Zubac found each other next to each other in the lane while DeAndre Jordan prepared to shoot a free throw.
Westbrook calls his shot with o-board over Zubac
After getting one lane violation trying to battle for an offensive rebound on an earlier free throw attempt, Westbrook had some words for the Clippers’ center. Russ appeared to be laughing and talking smack to Zubac as Jordan lined up his second free throw.
Westbrook appeared to tell Zubac multiple times, “You better box out” before Jordan proceeded to miss the free throw. Before you could blink, Westbrook burst past Zubac and elevated for the rebound, securing it and laying it in all in one motion. Westbrook celebrated with a big fist pump to the crowd and some shouting.
Russell Westbrook told Ivica Zubac that he "better box out" before the free throw...
— DraftKings (@DraftKings) January 9, 2025
Zubac, in fact, did not box out 😭pic.twitter.com/bDWgzOe1Pe
It was an incredible moment; an amazing display of Westbrook’s confidence and bravado along with his unbelievable competitiveness. The basket extended the Nuggets’ lead to 21-14 at the time and set the tone for the rest of the night.
Westbrook says “There’s nothing (Zubac) could do about it”
After the game, Westbrook gave an iconic account of what actually happened in the lane during that memorable moment. “I told (Zubac) I was gonna get the rebound. After I got the lane violation… I told Zu that if (Jordan) missed, I’m gonna get this one, and there’s nothing you can do about it. And he missed, and I got it, and there’s nothing he could do about it.”
“I told Zu that if he miss, I’m going to get this one and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
— DNVR Nuggets (@DNVR_Nuggets) January 9, 2025
“And he missed, and I got it, and there was nothing he could do about it.”
Russell Westbrook on his offensive rebound and putback off the Clippers’ missed free-throw 😂 pic.twitter.com/w1fvLds40i
It remains to be seen if this moment will stand the test of time quite as well as Babe Ruth’s legendary called shot in the 1932 World Series, but it was certainly one of the best moments of this Nuggets season. Westbrook continues to be an absolute delight both on and off the court and this is just the latest example.
He has his warts as a basketball player, but he’s doing a lot more good things than bad things right now and it’s hard to get mad at a guy who is so clearly leaving it all on the court every night in the name of winning. His hilarious personality and moments like these just endear him to the fanbase even more and he’s quickly becoming a fan favorite.