BROOKLYN, NY – While most of the Nuggets were sleeping or otherwise keeping to themselves during a long flight to Toronto last weekend, Russell Westbrook walked to the back of the team plane and struck up a conversation with head coach Michael Malone.

There was talk of basketball, Denver’s new second unit and the bumpy start to the season. But that was a prerequisite for Westbrook in this setting. He had already tried to make the rounds with his new teammates during training camp, wanting to get to know their backgrounds. This was a chance to hear more about his coach.

“I do that stuff all the time, man; it’s just not seen by (the public),” Westbrook said. “… I like to learn about people, about their families, his children. Basketball is whatever.”

He and Malone even eventually discussed the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, a subject Westbrook had learned about during his eleven seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, which motivated him to produce a History Channel documentary called “Tulsa Burning.”

“I mean, what an interesting person Russell Westbrook is,” Malone marveled.

Westbrook’s on-court production had been secondary to the elusive impact he left before Tuesday in Denver, when his breakout performance ignited a Brooklyn team. The Nuggets climbed back from a 17-point deficit to force overtime for the second time in as many nights – and as many cities. In a 144-139 victory, the backup point guard collected 22 points and five assists in regulation. After that, he didn’t even have to play extra to ensure his ruthless presence was still inescapable at Barclays Center.

With 17 seconds left and the game nearly over, Nets veteran Dennis Schroder committed an offensive foul in the corner, directly in front of the visiting bench. Westbrook paraded to the scene of the crime and pointed to the other side of the floor, happily mimicking the foul himself. Schroder stood by, stunned.

“It was time for the game to be over and time to get something to eat,” Westbrook said.

It was a vintage, idiosyncratic Russ moment, perhaps the most appropriate embodiment of his impact in Denver yet, in that it took place away from the game action and gave the roster a fresh personality. That has been a constant, even if it wasn’t points and assists.

“It’s not just about putting the ball in the hoop,” Peyton Watson said when asked if the scoring increase is what the Nuggets envisioned when they added Westbrook. “Russ does so many things that many people would never see. … All those things are more important to me than whether or not he makes or misses shots.