Russell Westbrook gets unfairly maligned for Nuggets' heartbreaking loss

"Don't foul the three-point shooter" is a message NBA coaches constantly drill into modern-day players. 

The Nuggets' Russell Westbrook didn't get the memo on Tuesday and fouled Nickeil Alexander-Walker with 0.1 seconds left in his team's 2OT loss to the Timberwolves.

The Nuggets were up 139-138 when Westbrook fouled Alexander-Walker, who proceeded to make two free throws to ice the game. To make matters worse, Westbrook also missed a wide-open layup seconds before fouling Alexander-Walker, which gave the Timberwolves a final scoring opportunity without a timeout. 

After the loss, Westbrook was widely criticized. Yahoo Sports' Jack Baer referred to his foul as an "awful play" that hurt the Nuggets on a night when Nikola Jokic dropped a career-high 61 points. Elsewhere, Emmanuel Acho felt that Westbrook "cost Jokic a win" with a pair of gaffes.

Even some Nuggets fans at Ball Arena were seemingly peeved with Westbrook. Just as he was leaving the court, one fan had some words for the former MVP, who returned to the court to confront him. Furthermore, Westbrook did not speak to reporters after the game, per The Denver Post's Bennett Durando, possibly to avoid any negative discourse about his late-game errors. 

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said he felt "awful for Russ" and defended his point guard's honor.

“He's a guy that hates to lose," Malone said of Westbrook. "He's a perfectionist and he's a competitor. And knowing Russ the way I do, he's probably gonna put a lot of this [loss] on him. But we lost tonight. The Denver Nuggets. We, as a collective group, lost that game tonight. Not one player."