National Basketball Association

Russell Westbrook revealed how he found out about Kevin Durant leaving

Published Nov. 15, 2016 3:13 p.m. ET

Pete Blackburn

When Kevin Durant left the Oklahoma City Thunder for the Golden State Warriors earlier this summer, many people wondered how it would affect A) his relationship with former running partner Russell Westbrook, and B) Westbrook's status with Thunder.

With Westbrook's new extension in OKC, the answer to the latter has become a little clearer. But the former is still still up for interpretation, especially now that we know how Westbrook found out about Durant's departure.

It seems odd that Durant wouldn't let Westbrook know about his plans, given their supposedly strong relationship and all they've been through together. Recent reports -- including one from Adrian Wojnarowski claiming that Westbrook deleted KD's goodbye text -- suggest that maybe their relationship wasn't all it was cracked up to be publicly.

But, despite those reports, both Westbrook and Durant claim there are no hard feelings over the split.

Following the news of Westbrook re-upping with the Thunder, Durant initially said that he would wait to congratulate his former teammate because it was a "touchy" subject. Then, Durant made it clear that he was happy for Westbrook, as long as it was the decision he wanted to make.

“I’m happy to see any player in this league do whatever they want to do," Durant told Michael Lee of The Vertical. "As long as he wasn’t pressured to do anything and felt like he did everything he wanted to do. And that’s how I feel about every player in this league. It’s good for him, man. It’s good for his family. It’s good for the people in Oklahoma City that love to watch him play and love to have him on their team.”

It's interesting that KD would suggest that maybe (just maybe!) Westbrook could have felt pressured into staying in OKC, but it seems that he's got no ill feelings towards the point guard. As for Russ, it's understandable that he wouldn't be thrilled about Durant leaving, especially if he found out via social media, but is trying to maintain a mostly positive relationship with him without burning any bridges.

Regardless, all this hoopla is ensuring that all eyes will be on next year's Thunder-Warriors matchups and, specifically, how Durant and Westbrook handle the reunion.