50 Fun Facts About Russell Westbrook

Which player, the first to average a triple-double for a season, saw Russell Westbrook break his record of 41 in 2017?

Oscar Robertson had been the only player to average a triple-double across a season until Westbrook did it four times in five years.

Russell Westbrook dedicated his 20-point, 20-rebound, 20-assist game in 2019 to which rapper, killed two days earlier?

Nipsey Hussle had been shot outside his clothing store in South Central Los Angeles, the city Westbrook calls his home town.

Russell Westbrook's first project as a producer was a 2021 documentary about which event in Oklahoma's history?

The Tulsa race massacre film, Tulsa Burning, earned three Emmy nominations; Westbrook said he had heard of Black Wall Street but was shocked once he learned the full history.

Which team traded for Russell Westbrook in both 2023 and 2024 yet never played him in a single game?

The Utah Jazz bought out his contract in 2023 and waived him two days after a 2024 sign-and-trade, so he signed elsewhere both times.

Which teammate, co-Player of the Month with Russell Westbrook for December 2015, left Oklahoma City the next summer?

Kevin Durant's exit in 2016 left Westbrook as the focal point, and he answered by averaging a triple-double and winning MVP.

Which two-word question names both the foundation Russell Westbrook started in 2012 and a short film he produced?

The Why Not? Foundation backs community education and family service programs and pushes young people to be self-confident.

Which number did Russell Westbrook wear for 11 seasons in Oklahoma City because a teammate already had his preferred 4?

Number 0 had also been his college number for the same reason: a teammate there already wore the 4 he had in high school.

Which team beat Russell Westbrook's Oklahoma City Thunder in five games in the 2012 NBA Finals, his only trip there?

The Miami Heat took the title even though Westbrook scored 43 points in Game 4, at the time the most of his playoff career.

Which former Oklahoma City teammate from the 2012 Finals run did Russell Westbrook rejoin after a July 2019 trade?

James Harden spent his first three NBA seasons in Oklahoma City, and the pair were teammates a third time in Los Angeles in 2023–24.

Which player did Russell Westbrook join in 2020 as the only two with triple-doubles against all 30 NBA teams?

LeBron James got there first, and in 2025 Westbrook joined him again as the second player with 25,000 points and 10,000 assists.

Which defending champion came from 3–1 down to beat Russell Westbrook's Thunder in the 2016 Western Conference Finals?

The Golden State Warriors won the last three games, wasting a Game 4 in which Westbrook had 36 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

Which team acquired Russell Westbrook in a July 2019 trade, ending his 11 seasons in Oklahoma City?

The Houston Rockets kept him for one season before trading him again, the start of a run of six teams in seven seasons.

Which All-Star point guard did Oklahoma City receive, with draft picks, in the 2019 trade for Russell Westbrook?

Chris Paul came with two first-round picks and two pick swaps; back in 2009 Westbrook had been the first rookie since Paul to post a triple-double.

Which university did Russell Westbrook hold out for, declining other offers until a scholarship opened up there in 2006?

UCLA only had room once a guard left early for the NBA, and Westbrook went from seldom-used freshman to top-five draft pick in two years.

Which player went first overall in the 2008 NBA draft, three picks ahead of Russell Westbrook?

Derrick Rose came from the Memphis team that had beaten Westbrook's college side in the NCAA tournament that spring.

Russell Westbrook's 20-20-20 game in 2019 was only the second in NBA history; which center recorded the first?

Wilt Chamberlain had also held the record for consecutive triple-doubles until Westbrook ran off 11 in a row earlier that season.

Which Lakers great did Russell Westbrook pass in October 2019 to move into second place for career triple-doubles?

Magic Johnson finished with 138, and in 2021 Westbrook became the first player since him to post a 30-point, 20-assist triple-double.

In which city did Russell Westbrook win his Olympic gold medal, two years after a world title with Team USA?

London hosted the 2012 Games, where he won his second gold in two years; he later turned down an invitation to the 2016 Olympic team.

With which team did Russell Westbrook take the NBA's career triple-double record in May 2021, his only season there?

The Washington Wizards got his fourth triple-double season, with career highs of 11.5 rebounds and 11.7 assists a game.

Which ten-time All-Star forward was traded to Oklahoma City in 2017 to play beside reigning MVP Russell Westbrook?

Carmelo Anthony stayed one season, which Westbrook opened with a triple-double against the Knicks, the team that had just traded Anthony away.

In 2016 Russell Westbrook became the first player to win which award outright in consecutive years?

All-Star Game MVP came with 41 points in 2015 and 31 points in only 22 minutes a year later, his first start in the event.

Which list of the NBA's greatest players, announced in 2021, included Russell Westbrook while he was still active?

The 75th Anniversary Team named him among the league's greatest in the same year he took the career triple-double record.

Russell Westbrook's 2023 debut for which team was a 176–175 loss, then the second-highest-scoring game in NBA history?

The Los Angeles Clippers had signed him two days earlier after his buyout, and he had 17 points and 14 assists in the double-overtime marathon.

Russell Westbrook chose number 18 to mark his eighteenth NBA season when he signed with which team in October 2025?

The Sacramento Kings signed him to a one-year minimum deal, and in his first month there he reached 10,000 career assists.

Which stage of the NCAA tournament did Russell Westbrook's college team reach in both of his seasons, 2007 and 2008?

The Final Four ended in defeat both times: to eventual champion Florida in 2007 and to Memphis a year later.

In which California city was Russell Westbrook born, though he grew up in Hawthorne and went to high school in Lawndale?

Long Beach was only his birthplace; his streetwear label pays tribute to the years he spent growing up in Hawthorne and Los Angeles.

Whom did the 'KB3' on Russell Westbrook's wristband and sneakers commemorate throughout his NBA career?

His late best friend Khelcey Barrs III died of an enlarged heart during a pickup game in 2004; the pair had hoped to play college ball together.

Which former Oklahoma City co-star did Russell Westbrook rejoin in 2023, four years after both were traded away?

Paul George had left Oklahoma City in a trade six days before Westbrook in July 2019, and later praised his leadership and work ethic.

Which teammate and Russell Westbrook were the first NBA pair to post triple-doubles in the same game twice in a season?

Nikola Jokić had 35 points, 15 assists and 12 rebounds on the January 2025 night they set the mark, to Westbrook's 25, 11 and 10.

Which point guard was traded, along with a protected first-round pick, for Russell Westbrook in December 2020?

John Wall went the other way after Westbrook had spent just one season in his new city, amid reports he and his co-star wanted out.

Which future Lakers teammate injured Russell Westbrook's knee while lunging for a steal in the 2013 playoffs?

Patrick Beverley's collision tore Westbrook's meniscus and ended a streak in which he had played every game of his first five seasons.

Which Thunder veteran already wore number 4 when Russell Westbrook arrived in 2008 and later had the number retired?

Nick Collison spent his whole career with the franchise, and in 2019 his 4 became the first number the Thunder ever retired.

Which college teammate of Russell Westbrook was drafted one pick after him in 2008 and later won a title in Cleveland?

Kevin Love went fifth and was traded to Minnesota on draft night; he and Westbrook later won world and Olympic gold together.

Whose record for career rebounds by a guard did Russell Westbrook break in November 2025, in his eighteenth NBA season?

Jason Kidd had 8,725 rebounds; Westbrook passed him on a night he grabbed 16 in the 204th triple-double of his career.

Which point guard did Russell Westbrook pass for a franchise points record in 2019 and tenth in career assists in 2023?

Gary Payton had 18,207 points for the franchise; Westbrook went past that total in the middle of his 11-game triple-double streak.

Which nickname does Basketball Reference list for Russell Westbrook alongside Russ, Beastbrook and Mr. Triple Double?

The Brodie is listed first among his nicknames; the last, Mr. Triple Double, reflects the 209 he recorded in regular-season games.

Which coach led Russell Westbrook in Oklahoma City from 2008 to 2015 and was reunited with him at another team in 2020?

Scott Brooks was NBA Coach of the Year in 2010 after the Thunder jumped from 23 wins to 50 in Westbrook's second season.

Which first-year Lakers coach made Russell Westbrook a reserve in 2022 for the first time since his rookie season?

Darvin Ham's switch made him an early Sixth Man of the Year favorite, and he set a record with four triple-doubles off the bench.

Which unisex streetwear label did Russell Westbrook launch in 2016 as a tribute to his Los Angeles upbringing?

Honor the Gift arrived a year before he published a book with Rizzoli called Style Drivers.

Russell Westbrook won his first gold medal with Team USA at the 2010 FIBA World Championship in which host country?

Turkey saw an unbeaten American run: a 9–0 record brought the first US world title since 1994 and the top spot in the rankings.

Which Pac-10 award did Russell Westbrook win as a sophomore in 2008, seven years before his first NBA scoring title?

Defensive Player of the Year went to a guard who had averaged 3.4 points as a little-used freshman one season earlier.

Russell Westbrook's record 42nd triple-double of 2016–17 ended with a 36-foot buzzer-beater to beat which home team?

The Denver Nuggets saw him score 18 of his 50 points in the last five minutes, and seven years later he signed to play for them.

Russell Westbrook's 2017 MVP came on a 47-win team; who was the previous winner from a team with under 50 wins?

Moses Malone had done it in 1982, 35 years earlier; Westbrook's Thunder went 47–35 and reached the playoffs only as the sixth seed.

Russell Westbrook did not start on varsity until his junior year at which high school in Lawndale, California?

Leuzinger first saw him as a 5-foot-8 freshman; a growth spurt before his senior year brought his first college recruiting letter.

Which coach recruited Russell Westbrook to college in 2006 after a late growth spurt turned him into a prospect?

Ben Howland used him mainly as a defender and energy player off the bench as a freshman, then started him when his point guard got hurt.

Russell Westbrook's career-high 58 points came in a 2017 loss to which team, which also knocked out the Thunder in 2019?

The Portland Trail Blazers won 126–121 despite the 58, and two years later beat Oklahoma City in five games in the first round.

Russell Westbrook's free throw accuracy fell after a 2017 NBA rule stopped which habit of his between attempts?

Walking toward half-court between shots had been his routine since childhood; once the rule kept shooters inside the three-point line, his accuracy fell from 82.3% to about 69%.

Which denim label named Russell Westbrook its Marketing Creative Director in 2015, the year of his first scoring title?

True Religion appointed him two years after he signed with an underwear label, a deal he called a natural fit because he had always loved fashion.

Which network premiered Passion Play: Russell Westbrook, the autobiographical documentary he produced, in 2021?

Showtime's film came out the same year as his first producing credit, a documentary that earned three Emmy nominations.

Which Celtics great did Russell Westbrook pass on the career triple-double list by recording his 60th in January 2017?

Larry Bird was overtaken during the MVP season in which Westbrook piled up 42 triple-doubles, one more than the old record.