NBA Triple-Double King Russell Westbrook Announces Retirement After 18 Stellar Seasons

Russell Westbrook played 1,301 regular-season games over his 18-year NBA career. The triple-double king and former NBA MVP Russell Westbrook announced his retirement after 18 seasons on Wednesday via social media.

“Sometimes you don’t even know when you’ve already watched the end. You had to be there. And now it’s over,” Westbrook wrote in his social media post.

Westbrook’s decision was revealed during a three-and-a-half-minute video. He did not respond to any questions from the narrator, but the theme made it clear that Westbrook was leaving on his own terms. At the conclusion of the video, a message on the screen read: “The greatest thing he left behind couldn’t fit inside a museum. It never had to be said.”

Westbrook, 37, recorded 209 triple-doubles, which includes a record 42 during his remarkable 2016-17 Most Valuable Player (MVP) season. That year, he averaged a career-high 31.6 points alongside 10.7 rebounds and 10.4 assists, becoming the first player since the legendary Oscar Robertson (1961-62) to average a triple-double over an entire season.

As a nine-time All-Star, Westbrook ranks fifth all-time in career assists with 10,351 and 14th in scoring with 27,176 points. He led the NBA in assists three times and in scoring twice. In 2021, Westbrook secured a spot on the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team. Furthermore, he was named All-Star Game MVP in consecutive years (2015 and 2016) and earned a gold medal representing the United States at the 2012 Olympics in London. Across 1,301 regular-season games with seven different franchises, he averaged 20.9 points, 8.0 assists, and 6.9 rebounds. In 135 career playoff games, he averaged 22.5 points, 7.1 assists, and 6.7 rebounds.

Initially selected fourth overall by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 2008 NBA Draft, Westbrook transitioned with the franchise when it relocated to Oklahoma City ahead of his rookie season. He spent 11 seasons with the organization, partnering with Kevin Durant to transform the Thunder into one of the league’s elite teams. Together with James Harden, the Oklahoma City squad advanced to the NBA Finals in 2012 before falling to the Miami Heat.

Westbrook earned eight of his All-Star selections while playing for the Thunder. His remaining All-Star appearance came during the 2019-20 season with the Houston Rockets, where he averaged 27.2 points in his sole campaign with the team.

“Russell Westbrook is the ultimate competitor,” stated Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti. “His internal belief and unbridled fearlessness helped establish the foundation of our organization from day one in 2008 and he elevated the confidence and inspired our community in every year thereafter. Russell will be as successful in his life after basketball as he was during his career because his qualities and gifts transfer. His impact on our community is still felt today, and he is beloved for his devotion as much as his talent. He built a Hall of Fame career not by making statements or simply by breaking records, he did it by showing us all the power of asking one simple question: Why Not?”

In his final six seasons, Westbrook played for five different teams. Last season, with the Sacramento Kings, he appeared in 64 games—making 58 starts—and averaged 15.2 points and 6.7 rebounds. Prior to his professional career, Westbrook was a college standout at UCLA, where he earned Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year honors as a sophomore before entering the NBA draft after two seasons.