Los angeles: Russell Westbrook, the NBA's all-time triple-double leader and 2017 Most Valuable Player (MVP), has officially announced his retirement from professional basketball. The announcement marks the end of an illustrious 18-year career, during which Westbrook became a member of the NBA's 75th anniversary team.
According to Thai News Agency, Westbrook made his announcement through a social media video, which featured a voiceover by actor Michael B. Jordan. The video did not include any remarks from Westbrook himself, but he captioned it with the words, "Sometimes you don't even realize you've seen the ending. You have to be there. And now it's over."
Drafted 4th overall in 2008 from UCLA by the Seattle SuperSonics, Westbrook began his career before the team relocated and became the Oklahoma City Thunder. He spent his first 11 seasons with the Thunder and later played for several teams, including the Houston Rockets, Washington Wizards, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, and Denver Nuggets. Most recently, he played for the Sacramento Kings, appearing in 64 games with 58 starts, and averaged 15.2 points and 6.7 assists.
Westbrook's career accolades include two Scoring Average of the Year awards, three Assists awards, two All-Star Game MVP awards, nine All-Star selections, and a gold medal from the 2012 London Olympics. He holds the all-time record for the most triple-doubles, with 209, and is second only to Nikola Jokic, who had 198 before the current season. Notably, Westbrook set the record for the most triple-doubles in a single season with 42 during his MVP-winning 2016-17 season.