Russell Westbrook’s Nuggets impact transcends 22 points vs. Nets

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — While most of the Nuggets were asleep or otherwise keeping to themselves during a long flight to Toronto last weekend, Russell Westbrook wandered to the back of the team’s plane and struck up a conversation with head coach Michael Malone.

There was talk of basketball, of Denver’s new-look second unit and its bumpy start to the season. But that was peripheral to Westbrook in this setting. He had already tried to make the rounds with his new teammates throughout training camp, wanting to familiarize himself with their backgrounds. Now was a chance to hear more about his coach’s.

“I do that stuff all the time, man; it’s just not seen by (the public),” Westbrook said. “… I like to learn about people, learn about their family, his kids. Basketball is whatever.”

He and Malone even ended up discussing the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, a topic Westbrook had learned about during his 11 seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, motivating him to produce a History Channel documentary called “Tulsa Burning.”

“I mean, what an interesting person Russell Westbrook is,” Malone marveled.

Westbrook’s on-court production had been secondary to the intangible impression he’s left on Denver before Tuesday, when his breakout performance sparked a team on fumes in Brooklyn. The Nuggets climbed back from a 17-point deficit to force overtime for the second time in as many nights — and as many cities. In a 144-139 win, the backup point guard amassed 22 points and five assists during regulation. Then he didn’t even need to play in overtime to ensure his relentless presence was still inescapable at Barclays Center.

With 17 seconds remaining and the game all but over, Nets veteran Dennis Schroder committed an offensive foul in the corner, directly in front of the visiting bench. Westbrook paraded out to the scene of the crime and pointed to the other end of the floor, gleefully mimicking the foul call himself. Schroder stood by, bewildered.

“It was about time the game was over and time to go get some food,” Westbrook said.

It was a vintage, idiosyncratic Russ moment, perhaps the most appropriate embodiment of his impact in Denver so far, in that it occurred away from game action and infused the roster with some fresh personality. That has been a constant, even if points and assists haven’t been.

“It’s not just about putting the ball in the hoop,” Peyton Watson said when asked if the scoring surge is what the Nuggets envisioned when they added Westbrook. “Russ does so much stuff that a lot of people would never see. … All of that stuff matters to me more than whether or not he makes or misses shots.”