Following Malone and Booth's untimely firings, The Athletic put out a report claiming Westbrook was the 'biggest lightning rod' that put a wrench between the now-former head coach and general manager.

This was never more evident than in Denver's 140-139 double-overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on April 1. Westbrook attempted to disrupt Nickeil Alexander-Walker's three-point attempt as time expired, in the process running into the Wolves guard and being whistled for a foul.

Westbrook has played for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Washington Wizards, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Nuggets. While the UCLA product will go down as one of the best point guards in NBA history, Westbrook has had a negative impact on his coaches since getting traded by the Thunder to the Rockets in 2019.