The 2025-26 NBA season is less than two weeks away, and future Hall of Famer Russell Westbrook remains unsigned. There have been suggestions about Westbrook being blackballed from the NBA, but his former teammate Carmelo Anthony doesn’t think that’s the case. Anthony stated on his 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony podcast, that you can make a better case that he himself got blackballed.
“He’s not being blackballed,” Anthony said. “You have more of a case of saying that I got blackballed… one person that knocked the domino down, right? He sent that message around to everybody. So I can say my issue was with one person, right?”
It’s unclear who this individual Anthony was talking about there. It could be Phil Jackson, who was desperately trying to part ways with him during their time with the New York Knicks.
“Russ ain’t get waived,” Anthony added. ” He ain’t get cut. It was just a free agent. And now you got to go and see where do he fit into my roster. Where do he fit into our system? Do we need what Russ can give us at this point in time in his career? What team needs that?”
The Sacramento Kings have seemingly been the only NBA team that has had serious interest in Westbrook this summer, but the move hasn’t come close to materializing yet. This has led to a lot of talk about how the 36-year-old made a big mistake by opting out of his $3.4 million player option with the Denver Nuggets for 2025-26. He might have had a proper reason for it, though.
Former NBA player Danny Green heard that the Nuggets weren’t planning to play Westbrook at all this season. Green feels the nine-time All-Star still should have picked up the option for the guaranteed money and then made the team trade him.
Well, Westbrook, who averaged 13.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game in 2024-25, might still get paid a lot of money, but he’d have to go overseas for that. It has been reported that he may have an offer from China that would pay him almost four times what the Kings could offer.
While one can never have enough money, you’d imagine a fat paycheck isn’t a priority for Westbrook now, having already earned about $345 million in salaries in the NBA. He’d want to play at the highest level, but the door might never end up opening for him.
Carmelo Anthony Doesn’t Want Russell Westbrook To Go Back To The Thunder
Anthony thinks struggling teams like the Charlotte Hornets are the only options for Westbrook at this stage of his career. He stated it’s not an unfair situation but an unfortunate one.
A team Anthony definitely doesn’t want to see Westbrook go to is the Oklahoma City Thunder. When co-host Kazeem Famuyide brought up the Thunder as an option, Anthony explained why going back would be a terrible idea.
“No, he can’t help them, no,” Anthony said. “… You can’t bring Russell Westbrook back to OKC and not play him. He cannot go from the greatest player in your franchise history to maybe playing or maybe not playing. It doesn’t work. You diminish that man’s legacy by that. Let’s protect the legacies of these players.”
Anthony believes Westbrook thinks he can still contribute, so going to the Thunder and riding the bench doesn’t work for him, even if he can potentially get a ring by returning.
