Russell Westbrook’s petty postgame jab misconstrued for Kevin Durant

Jan. 19 (UPI) — Every look and whisper was magnified Wednesday in the Golden State Warriors’ thumping of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Bad blood after Kevin Durant’s offseason departure to the Bay Area has presumably ended the relationship between him and former Thunder teammate Russell Westbrook.

Westbrook has said the two haven’t spoken, with the exception of a few text messages, since Durant was signed in July to a two-year, $54 million deal. Durant scored a game-high 40 points and had 12 rebounds in the Warriors’ 121-100 victory at the Oracle Arena. Westbrook managed 27 points, 15 rebounds, and 13 assists in the loss. It was his 21st triple-double this season.

During the game, Westbrook and Durant ran into each other in the third quarter in an altercation that both players later denied ever happening. Westbrook dunked over Durant on one play, and told him not to jump after the play, according to ESPN analyst Mark Jackson. The Warriors’ Zaza Pachulia ran into Westbrook on a screen, sending him to the floor. Pachulia then stood menacingly over Westbrook.

Westbrook said in his postgame comments that he didn’t see Pachulia’s stare down, adding: “I don’t know. He hit me kind of hard, but it’s alright. I’m going to get his [expletive] back — straight up.”

“Nah, I didn’t see until just now, but I don’t play that game,” Westbrook told reporters. “I’m going to get his [expletive] back so — whenever that is, I don’t know what it’s going to be, but I don’t play that game.”

When asked if he and Durant were on speaking terms, Westbrook told reporters

After the final buzzer, he told teammate Enes Kanter not to say: “what’s up to that [expletive],” referring to a Kanter giving a post-game handshake to a Warriors player. That quote was likely misconstrued as Westbrook referring to Durant, but several Warriors players were in the area at the time.

Durant and Westbrook were teammates from 2009 through 2015, before Durant bolted. Westbrook singed an $85 million contract extension in August to stay with the Thunder.

The two teams meet again Feb. 11 at Chesapeake Energy Arena for the first time in Durant’s Warriors career.