Russell Westbrook retired from the NBA in the offseason, and he is already set to be honored during the 2026-27 season.

The Oklahoma City Thunder announced that the organization intends to retire Westbrook's No. 0, meaning no player will ever wear that number again. Westbrook was an original Thunder draft pick and spent the majority of his career with Oklahoma City before he bounced around the NBA to end his career.

Westbrook is still beloved among Thunder fans, so it was only a matter of time before he would get his number retired. While the former point guard will join several names in the rafters, his honor is special for Thunder fans in particular.

Here's why the Thunder will be honoring Westbrook this season.

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Russell Westbrook number retirement

The Thunder announced that they will retire Russell Westbrook's No. 0 on February 7, when Oklahoma City hosts the New York Knicks.

0 Forever 💙 02.07.27 https://t.co/pTqRnespU2

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 2, 2026

Westbrook was the very first pick in Oklahoma City Thunder history, as the franchise selected him fourth overall in the 2008 NBA Draft. The point guard then spent the next 11 seasons with the organization, making four Western Conference Finals and one NBA Finals in that span.

During his Thunder career, Westbrook led the NBA in points twice, in assists three times, and he won the MVP award in 2016-17 when he averaged a triple-double for the first time in three straight seasons.

The Thunder have eight numbers retired, but only Nick Collison was honored for his play with Oklahoma City. Six others had their numbers retired as members of the Seattle SuperSonics, while Bill Russell's No. 6 is retired league-wide.

Before Westbrook arrived and the Thunder moved, the SuperSonics had just one previous player wear the No. 0, although two players wore the No. 00. Now, no one will ever wear No. 0 as a member of the Thunder besides Westbrook.

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Russell Westbrook Thunder stats

  • Seasons: 11
  • PPG: 23.0
  • RPG: 7.0
  • APG: 8.4
  • SPG: 1.8
  • BPG: 0/3
  • FG%: 43.4%
  • 3P%: 30.8%
  • FT%: 80.1%

Westbrook put up the best numbers of his career with the Thunder, which is why he was one of the best players in the NBA. Additionally, Westbrook holds the Thunder franchise record for points with 18,859 and triple-doubles with 138. In fact, he has 124 more triple-doubles than Gary Payton, who is second in franchise history in that stat.

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