THE WAY RUSSELL WESTBROOK left Oklahoma City isn't a sore spot for anyone in town. Not the way it was when Kevin Durant left in 2016, or James Harden in 2013. Those departures were messy. Westbrook's was not, even though he did initiate it behind the scenes.
So, when he checked into the game with 5:17 left in the first quarter of Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals, as the Thunder's current MVP candidate, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was at the free throw line being serenaded with MVP chants, the crowd stopped hyping up their new star and stood to cheer for their old one.