The Denver Nuggets are without star point guard Jamal Murray, who entered concussion protocol in the second half of Friday night’s loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Murray, who will not be able to play in Saturday’s game against the Utah Jazz, is not allowed to return yet.

17-year NBA veteran Russell Westbrook started at point guard in Murray’s absence on Saturday. Westbrook has plenty of experience from the NBA level, as this is his 1,040th career start in 1,168 career games.

In the first half of the game against Utah, Westbrook threw down an alley-oop dunk that went viral on social media.

via Nuggets on Instagram: “Russ is up! ”

This Nuggets video was viewed more than 100,000 times in the first hour after it was posted. As one of the NBA’s most popular players, Westbrook’s highlights regularly go viral on social media.

The Nuggets signed Westbrook in free agency this summer after the nine-time NBA All-Star was acquired by the Jazz following a trade with the LA Clippers. Following his experience with the Los Angeles Lakers, Westbrook spent two seasons with the Clippers.

Serving primarily as Murray’s backup, Westbrook is a capable starter whenever Denver needs him to step into that role. It’s been an up-and-down start to the season for Denver, but they have a new-look team and need some time to build the chemistry between them.

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