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The Skip Bayless Curse Lives On? | San Antonio Spurs Rookies Play Innocent After Adding To Russell Westbrook Disrespect While Associating His Name With “Brick”

Posted byBy Rhett Butler | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

The curse of renaming Russell Westbrook to “Westbrick” seems stuck, as it has crept into the lexicon of younger NBA players.

During the Summer League festivities in Las Vegas, San Antonio Spurs rookie Jeremy Sochan was caught associating the word “bricks” with the Los Angeles Lakers star.

Now he wants to set the record straight that he was “not intending on being disrespectful” to Russell Westbrook when he associated the word “bricks” with the crestfallen Los Angeles Lakers star. However Freudian, the slip happened.

Blame it on “Undisputed” host Skip Bayless, who perpetuated the moniker or the new ubiquity it has taken for the Westbrook family.

Over the weekend, in a social media video that went viral over the weekend, Sochan and his fellow rookie teammate Malaki Branham participated in a word association game that veered into the toxic realm of Westbrook slander.

Hoping that Sochan would guess the phrase “triple-double,” Branham offered a clue that revealed what lies beneath.

“Russell Westbrook get ’em a lot,” Branham said to a ready Sochan, who immediately offered “bricks.” Brantham halted the direction, saying, “No, no, no!”

However, the damage was already done. Although Sochan eventually guessed “triple-double,” he realized his folly, and on Sunday, he took to Twitter to address the incident and possible fallout with Westbrook.

The 19-year-old shot off a tweet in homage to Westbrook, hoping to stave off a problem calling him his “idol since I started watching the NBA.” He also weirdly added that his dog’s name is Russell. Overshare much?

The Spurs selected Sochan with the ninth overall pick in this year’s NBA draft after his one season at Baylor. While at the school, he averaged 9.2 points per game and shot 58.5 percent from the floor and 29.6 percent from 3-point range.

Russell and Nina Westbrook have been very vocal about the effects of the Westbrook name modification on their family. It all came to a fever pitch during the 2022 NBA draft. When the Los Angeles Lakers selected Max Christie, “Undisputed” co-host Skip Bayless took to Twitter to criticize the move.

“Lakers acquire a 2nd-round pick, take Michigan State’s Max Christie, who shot only 32% from 3 last season. Perfect! He’ll fit right in with LeBron and Westbrick.”

Westbrook clapped back succinctly.

“Yoooo… watch your mouth. Don’t say anything here you wouldn’t say to my face.”

The Lakers star’s wife chimed in on the Westbrook insults Bayless lobs with abandon.

“It’s very disheartening that you would choose to continue to shame my family name. Today was a really sad day my daughters and me. The fact that you can’t respect a simple request not to try to tarnish my family name is saddening and such a pile on. It’s extremely hurtful.”

The Westbrooks have also revealed that “Westbrick” is “shaming my name, my legacy for my kids.”

More recently, Bayless has taken the challenge of offering Westbrook a seat at the debate table to hash out their athletic and phonic opinion differences.

“Hey, Russell Westbrook (@russwest44) … happy to talk face-to-face about the nickname I believe I originated in 2012,” Bayless tweeted. “JOIN ME ON TV/PODCAST. Let’s talk about how you’ll make $47 mil next yr after being THE WORST 3-PT SHOOTER IN THE NBA! Most overpaid player ever? PLEASE JOIN ME.”

However, Westbrook responded by singing Beyoncé’s new hit chorus, “you won’t break my soul,” which might now be transferred to the rooks of the San Antonio Spurs.

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