It’s often quite rare for somebody to meet their soulmate during some of the very early stages of their life. But Los Angeles Clippers point guard Russell Westbrook is someone who did. The future NBA player was fortunate enough to meet his wife, Nina Earl, while attending the University of California almost two decades ago. Their campus love story was reportedly built up on several foundations, the most prominent being their mutual love of basketball. Just like Westbrook, Nina was a member of the university’s basketball team and quite a competitive one. It was a fact that Westbrook found out quite early on.

A few months ago, both Russell Westbrook and Nina Earl sat down for an interview with celebrity Jennifer Hudson on the latter’s show. On the show, they drew attention to the beginnings of their relationship and how the couple formed a bond over basketball. When asked if they ever competed against each other, Nina highlighted that the particular game only took place once since both of them were quite “competitive”.

“After I beat him the first time….it got a little ugly, just like in the movie,” said Nina. “I decided I was going to stay on top and so we’ve never played again since then”.

Nina had quite a memorable college basketball career to her name. During the 124 games she played for UCLA, she accumulated an average score of 5.4 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1 assist. Her field goal percentage remained sustained at 44.2% and her field throw percentage stood at a commendable 57.6%. During her freshman year, she was ranked the 2 best on her team and led the offensive play for them on several occasions.

Unlike the 9x NBA All-Star, however, Nina did not choose to take her basketball talents to the ultimate league. Instead, she made use of her bachelor’s degree in psychology and her master’s degree in clinical psychology to establish her very own career as a licensed marriage and family therapist.

How did Russell Westbrook perform during his UCLA days?

Russell Westbrook devoted over 16 years of his life to building up an NBA career that earned him several accolades and even got him named to the prestigious 75 Anniversary team. When one would have looked at his college stats, however, they would have been amazed at how far along the player has progressed.

Westbrook only spent two years with the UCLA Bruins before going on to declare himself in the 2008 NBA draft. His freshman season wouldn’t be jotted down in the history books, as he only managed to average a score of 3.4 points, 0.8 rebounds, and 0.7 assists. Out of the 39 games he played that season, he managed to score in the double digits only thrice. Westbrook also wasn’t regarded as a member of the main roster, instead acting as a backup for Darren Collison. It was only in his next season that he got the chance to shine.

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After getting promoted to the main lineup in light of Collison’s injury, the player managed to perform better and secure an average score of 12.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.7 assists to his name. His defensive skills were given more regard than his offensive ones, as Westbrook also ended up winning the Defensive Player of the Year award that season.

We may never get to see a Russell Westbrook-Nina Earl matchup after what happened. However, it would have been interesting to see whether the latter would have managed to take on the veteran NBA player after his many years of growth.

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