Thunder respond to announcer's 'cotton pickin' Russell Westbrook call

There are a lot of terms one could use to describe Russell Westbrook's play.

Explosive. Fiery. Passionate.

The thunder play-by-play announcer decided to go another route, however.

Brian Davis, a full-time employee of the team, referred to Westbrook as being "out of his cotton pickin' mind" during the Thunder's win over the Grizzlies Wednesday.

David made the call after Westbrook led a fast break, driving to the hoop before making an acrobatic underhand pass to Terrance Ferugson in the corner, who drilled a three-pointer to put the Thunder up 61-46.

"Russell looking for Ferguson in the corner for three. Bang! Westbrook is out of his cotton pickin' mind!" Davis exclaimed.

The Thunder called Davis' remarks "offensive and inappropriate."

"We think obviously the use of that term was offensive and inappropriate, and I expressed that to Brian last night," Dan Mahoney, the team's vice president of broadcasting, told The Norman Transcript on Thursday. "Brian assures me that it was not meant in any derogatory way, and he apologizes. But again, we feel strongly that it's inappropriate and offensive."

Westbrook finished with 6 points, 19 assists and 20 rebounds, becoming the first player to average a triple-double in multiple seasons.

The phrase "out of his cotton-pickin' mind" originated as a term to describe workers who harvested crops in the South during the 17th-to-19th century. It has since become a slang term for "crazy" but is often perceived as derogatory with racial overtones and associated with slavery.

Davis has yet to release a statement on the matter. The Thunder said the decision to issue a formal apology is up to him.

"That's really up to Brian," Mahoney told The Transcript. "Again, we've expressed to him strongly that it was offensive and inappropriate, and that's all we can do for right now."