As Sam Presti sported his signature red-framed glasses, Russell Westbrook went from laughs to tears. The Oklahoma City Thunder announced on Monday that they will retire his No. 0 jersey on Sunday, Feb. 7, when they host the New York Knicks on NBC's Sunday Night Basketball matchup.
When Westbrook announced his NBA retirement in Aug. 2026, this felt inevitable. Presti hinted at his 2026-27 preseason press conference that plans were being finalized. Now, the full details are known. The future Hall-of-Famer will join his former teammate Nick Collison in the Paycom Center rafters.
"It's amazing. It's a true blessing, quite frankly. It's not just for me but my family, my wife, my kids, my mom, my dad, my brother, my entire city," Westbrook said. "To get your jersey retired creates a legacy. Creates a sense of just all the work you put in. The time and effort and energy you put into the game. I'm truly grateful for that honor. I look forward to that night."
Of course, Westbrook is one of the era-defining NBA superstars of the 2010s. He played 18 legendary seasons in the league from 2008-26. The first 11 seasons were with the Thunder — which were easily his best years both at an individual and team level.
In that time, Westbrook was a one-time MVP winner, completely rewrote what a triple-double meant and a perennial All-Star and All-NBA member. On top of that, he also co-starred — alongside Kevin Durant — on OKC's first title contender. It had several deep playoff runs throughout the 2010s.
As Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recently put it, Westbrook is OKC's first child. The Thunder fanbase have absolutely loved him over the years. Even after he left in 2019. Every time he visited his old NBA home, the crowd would roll out the blue-and-orange carpet with high praise and affinity.
Now, Thunder fans won't have to wait long to see Westbrook get the highest honor an NBA player can get — a jersey retirement ceremony. He'll forever be part of OKC's NBA Mt. Rushmore. This is the latest example of how synonymous both parties are with each other for the rest of basketball eternity.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Russell Westbrook emotional over upcoming OKC Thunder jersey retirement: 'True blessing'
