1. Russell Westbrook III was born on November 12,1988 and is an American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association.
81 Facts About Russell Westbrook
1. 2.
Russell Westbrook played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins and earned third-team all-conference honors in the Pac-10.
3.
Russell Westbrook was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics, who then relocated to Oklahoma City that same week.
4.
Russell Westbrook played for the Thunder for 11 seasons and is the team's all-time leading scorer.
5.
Russell Westbrook appeared in the NBA Finals as a member of the Thunder in 2012, losing to the Miami Heat.
6.
In 2019, Russell Westbrook was traded to the Houston Rockets, playing one season for the organization before being traded again to the Washington Wizards in 2020.
7.
Russell Westbrook is one of two players in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season.
8.
Russell Westbrook has achieved that feat four times and is the all-time NBA leader in career triple-doubles.
9.
Russell Westbrook is known for his ability to score near the basket, his rebounding, his durability, and his intensity as a competitor.
10.
Russell Westbrook has represented the United States national team twice, winning gold medals in the 2010 FIBA World Championship and the 2012 Olympics.
11.
Russell Westbrook III was born in Long Beach, California, to Russell Westbrook Jr.
12.
Russell Westbrook never fails to wear a "KB3" wristband in loving memory of his best friend.
13.
Russell Westbrook did not start on his school's varsity team until his junior year, and did not receive his first college recruiting letter until the summer before his senior year.
14.
Russell Westbrook initially did not attract much attention from top college basketball programs.
15.
Russell Westbrook wore number 0 throughout his career at the University of California, Los Angeles.
16.
Russell Westbrook averaged 3.4 points, 0.8 rebounds, and 0.7 assists on the year.
17.
The next season, Collison was injured and Russell Westbrook was named the starter.
18.
Russell Westbrook finished the season averaging 12.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.6 steals.
19.
Russell Westbrook stayed in school and finished the quarter, a rarity for high draft picks declaring early for the draft.
20.
Russell Westbrook was selected fourth overall in the 2008 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics, which then relocated to Oklahoma City and became the Thunder six days later.
21.
Russell Westbrook signed with the team on July 5,2008.
22.
On March 2,2009, Russell Westbrook recorded his first career triple-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
23.
Russell Westbrook averaged 15.3 points, 5.3 assists, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game in his rookie season.
24.
On November 26,2010, Russell Westbrook scored a then-career-high 43 points against the Indiana Pacers.
25.
Russell Westbrook was selected by NBA head coaches to be a Western Conference reserve for the 2011 NBA All-Star Game.
26.
Russell Westbrook finished the season with averages of 21.9 points, 8.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.9 steals.
27.
Russell Westbrook was named to the All-NBA Second Team for the first time.
28.
Russell Westbrook averaged 23.8 points, 6.4 assists, and 5.4 rebounds in the playoffs.
29.
Russell Westbrook averaged 23.6 points, 5.5 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.7 steals for the lockout-shortened season and was voted to the All-NBA Second Team for the second year in a row.
30.
Russell Westbrook helped lead the Thunder to the NBA Finals for the first time since the franchise relocated, but they would lose in five games to the Miami Heat.
31.
Russell Westbrook was selected for the NBA All-Star Game.
32.
Russell Westbrook helped lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to the playoffs and the first seed in the Western Conference.
33.
Russell Westbrook had surgery on April 27,2013, and was declared out for the rest of the playoffs.
34.
Russell Westbrook was named to the All-NBA Second Team for the third consecutive year.
35.
Russell Westbrook played the rest of the season on limited minutes and sat out the second night of back-to-backs.
36.
On May 27,2014, in a Game 4 victory, Russell Westbrook recorded 40 points, 5 rebounds, 10 assists and 5 steals.
37.
Russell Westbrook averaged 26.7 points, 8.1 assists, and 7.3 rebounds in the postseason.
38.
Russell Westbrook tallied 41 points and was named the All-Star MVP.
39.
On February 27, in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, Russell Westbrook recorded 40 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists to become the first player to have three straight triple-doubles since LeBron James did so in 2009.
40.
Russell Westbrook recorded 31 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals in 22 minutes, and became the first player in All-Star history to win consecutive MVPs outright.
41.
The Thunder were determined to keep Russell Westbrook and held off all trade talks in order to work out an extension.
42.
Russell Westbrook finished with 38 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his 22nd triple-double of the season.
43.
Russell Westbrook scored 18 of his 50 points, including a 36-foot game-winning buzzer-beater, in the game's last five minutes.
44.
Russell Westbrook is one of two players in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season.
45.
On June 26,2017, Russell Westbrook was named the recipient of the NBA Most Valuable Player Award.
46.
Russell Westbrook was the first winner from a team with fewer than 50 wins since Moses Malone in 1982.
47.
On September 29,2017, Russell Westbrook signed a five-year, $205 million contract extension with the Thunder.
48.
Russell Westbrook had 30 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds against the Raptors as the Thunder won their sixth straight game.
49.
Russell Westbrook finished the season as the league leader in assists per game, averaging 10.3 per game, and he was named to the All-NBA Second Team.
50.
Russell Westbrook became the second player in NBA history to record 20 points, 20 rebounds and 20 assists in a single game, after Wilt Chamberlain.
51.
Russell Westbrook led the league in assists per game for the third consecutive season.
52.
On July 16,2019, Russell Westbrook was traded to the Houston Rockets for All-Star Chris Paul, two protected first-round picks, and two first-round pick swaps.
53.
Russell Westbrook recovered and rejoined the team later that month in Orlando, Florida, for the league's restart.
54.
On December 2,2020, amidst rumors that he and Harden were unhappy and wanted out from the Rockets, Russell Westbrook was traded to the Washington Wizards for John Wall and a 2023 lottery-protected first-round draft pick.
55.
Russell Westbrook was not named to the 2021 All-Star Game, missing the game for the first time since 2014.
56.
Russell Westbrook won his third NBA assist title, averaging a career-high 11.7 assists per game.
57.
Russell Westbrook has averaged a triple-double for a season four times.
58.
Russell Westbrook later responded to critics, saying that they were only looking at the stat sheet and not his overall play on the court.
59.
On November 2,2022, CBS Sports reported that Russell Westbrook had described his new role coming off the bench as "'beneficial for everybody'".
60.
Russell Westbrook has never been known for his shooting accuracy, and is notorious for playing best in situations where he can be the ball-dominant scorer and orchestrator of the offense.
61.
On February 9,2023, Russell Westbrook was traded to the Utah Jazz in a three-team trade involving the Minnesota Timberwolves.
62.
Russell Westbrook quickly became the betting favorite to win Sixth Man of the Year, but the Lakers still never reached.
63.
On February 22,2023, Russell Westbrook signed with the Los Angeles Clippers, reuniting with his former Thunder teammate Paul George.
64.
On January 1,2024, Russell Westbrook passed Patrick Ewing for 25th place on the league's all-time scoring list.
65.
On July 26,2024, Russell Westbrook signed with the Denver Nuggets.
66.
Russell Westbrook posted the triple-double without a missed field goal and a turnover.
67.
Russell Westbrook became just the third player in NBA history to record a triple double with no missed shots and no turnovers, joining Nikola Jokic and Domantas Sabonis as the only players to achieve this feat.
68.
Russell Westbrook surpassed 26,000 career points and became just the 21st player to reach the milestone and the second point guard after Oscar Robertson.
69.
The 2010 team relied heavily on a small lineup, and Russell Westbrook finished in the top five on the team in minutes per game, and top three in points and assists per game.
70.
Russell Westbrook was selected to play for the 2012 Summer Olympic team in London, where he won a second gold medal.
71.
Russell Westbrook declined an invitation to join the 2016 Olympic team.
72.
Russell Westbrook regularly creates good scoring opportunities for his teammates, resulting in him averaging over eight assists per game for his career.
73.
Russell Westbrook is currently in his 17th year in the NBA.
74.
Russell Westbrook's three-point shooting and turnovers are sometimes mentioned when pundits criticize his play.
75.
Russell Westbrook has been criticized for his "single-mindedness" and for being uncooperative.
76.
In 2017, Russell Westbrook signed a 10-year extension with Jordan Brand that gave him the largest total endorsement deal of any athlete sponsored by the brand.
77.
In November 2013, Russell Westbrook signed with Kings and Jaxs Boxer Briefs.
78.
In 2015, Russell Westbrook was named Marketing Creative Director of the denim brand True Religion.
79.
Russell Westbrook made his production debut with Tulsa Burning: The 1921 Race Massacre about the Tulsa race massacre, which was inspired by his time playing in Oklahoma City.
80.
Russell Westbrook produced his autobiographical documentary, Passion Play: Russell Westbrook, which debuted on Showtime in 2021.
81.
Russell Westbrook wears a "KB3" wristband and has "KB3" on his sneakers in honor of his childhood friend Khelcey Barrs III.