OKC's Russell Westbrook Accuses Warriors' Zaza Pachulia of Intentionally Hurting Him
The reigning Most Valuable Player of the National Basketball Association, Russell Westbrook, recently claimed that Golden State Warriors center Zaza Pachulia had intentionally hurt him during their latest game.
The two teams met for the third time in the 2017-18 NBA season last Saturday, Feb. 24, where the Warriors won for the first time against the Thunder this regular season, 112-80. OKC had dominated in their first two games with finals scores 108-91 and 125-105, respectively.
However, Westbrook appeared to be upset because of a different reason. After the Saturday night game, a reporter asked OKC's top scorer about the collision. His answer hinted that he was still gravely disappointed of the incident and said it was a "dumb" question to ask if Pachulia intended to fall on his legs.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"Obviously, it was intentional. So don't ask me if it was intentional. Nobody touched him, he fell on my leg, tried to hurt me. But hey, that's how it goes," Westbrook added. When asked if Pachulia played dirty, he did not hesitate to reply: "Yeah, for sure. For sure."
In replay videos, Westbrook can be seen scrambling for the loose ball after his failed shot with the Warriors' Nick Young while Pachulia was also nearby. Young's rebound led him and Westbrook to collide, then suddenly, Pachulia also fell on the latter's leg.
While Westbrook did not sustain any injuries from the collision, he was initially seen feeling his legs and shaking his head in apparent disappointment as Pachulia stood up and ran to the other side of the court.
Pachulia's teammate, Kevin Durant, defended him after the game and said the 6-foot-11 center was just "clumsy" after his foot got tangled with Young's during the ball hustle.
However, other NBA players also voiced out their concern against the alleged intentions of Pachulia.
The Boston Celtics' Kyrie Irving commented on a replay video posted on Instagram and said the NBA officials have to review Pachulia's plays. Westbrook's teammate, Paul George, shared the thought that the said player may have "aimed" where to land despite no one pushing him. "That's Zaza making a Zaza play. He's on the end of hurting a lot of guys," George added.
This was not the first time Pachulia had been involved in a similar allegation. The Warriors previously faced the San Antonio Spurs in the 2017 Western Conference finals. Kawhi Leonard had just gotten back from an injury but did not stay for long after a collision with Pachulia.
While the physical contact ended his series run, Leonard believed it was not intentional. But Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich thought otherwise and said: "A two-step, lead-with-your-foot closeout is not appropriate. It's dangerous, it's unsportsmanlike. It's just not what anybody does to anybody else. And this particular individual has a history with that kind of action."
