Russell Westbrook Reveals Why Rarely Seeing His Parents Disagree Gave Him a Blueprint for Marriage [Video]

Russell Westbrook says that watching his parents work together taught him important lessons about relationships.

Video

The NBA player appeared on his wife Nina Westbrook’s podcast, “Do Tell Relationship,” where he reflected on how his upbringing influenced his approach to marriage.

Westbrook emphasized that the cooperation he saw between his parents, Russell Westbrook Sr. and Shannon Horton, shaped his perspective.

“I think that’s one of the biggest things that I was able to see growing up, and mom working, dad working, kind of working through our schedule,” he said. “Every time there was a sporting event for myself and my brother, they both were there. Going to practice, we went together. My dad [worked] different shifts, [but] we ate together.”

He noted that he rarely saw conflict between his parents, which gave him a strong example of respect and partnership.

“As I mentioned to you, like, I don’t remember seeing them, like, disagree, which I’m sure they [did] growing up,” he said. “I don’t remember it. And maybe that was intentional, but it kind of helped me see, at least from a male’s perspective, like, okay, what my dad is, how he treats my mom, or how [the] relationship [worked], like, the things he [did] and, you know, for a family and different things like that.”

Westbrook said observing his parents provided a foundation for his own expectations in relationships.

“So it allowed me to kind of get like a base of, okay, this is what I should be aspired to kind of look at in a relationship, and then kind of obviously build my relationship based off my own personal experiences,” he said. He added that having such a clear model was valuable because many of his friends did not grow up with similar examples.

The influence of his parents’ partnership is evident in his own family life. Westbrook and his wife, Nina, married in August 2015 and are approaching their ten-year anniversary.

For Westbrook, the lessons learned from his parents about cooperation, respect, and commitment continue to guide how he navigates marriage and raises his family.