Taylor Swift Praises Russell Westbrook's NBA MVP Win, Says He Taught Her How to 'Shake it Off'
Is Russell Westbrook an official member of the Swift Squad?
The Oklahoma City Thunder point guard got a shout out from Taylor Swift herself at the NBA Awards on Monday night, as the recently reclusive pop star pre-taped a message congratulating Westbrook on his MVP win.
“I was the one who taught you to play basketball,” Swift joked in the video, which shows her rocking a curly updo with bangs and casual white sweater. “I remember the first time you beat me at basketball. I was very upset, and you said... ‘You just have to shake it off.’”
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“So essentially we have each other to thank for these careers,” she continued. “That’s why I’m a part of your congratulations video, because we just, we go back 20 years.”
Swift then set the record straight, admitting that the two have never met, but saying she admires him just the same. “You are amazing. You’re the MVP, I’m so happy for you.”
In fact, the mutual respect between Westbrook and Swift goes back several years. Back in May 2015, Westbrook posted an Instagram vid of himself rocking out to Swift’s hit “Bad Blood.”
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Westbrook earned his first league MVP honors this year after a historic season, in which he averaged a triple-double, becoming the second player in NBA history to do so, after Oscar Robertson in 1962 . He beat out reigning two-time MVP Steph Curry, as well as James Harden, LeBron James and Kawhi Leanard for the honor, earning 69 of 100 first-place votes.
Meanwhile, Swift has been laying low, spending her time working on new music in Nashville and jet-setting with rumored new boyfriend Joe Alwyn.
See more in the video below!