Home From the Hardwood, Los Angeles Honors Russell Westbrook at City Hall

Russell Westbrook is coming home to City Hall. The City of Los Angeles will honor the retired NBA star on Friday, October 9, at 10 a.m., when Councilwoman Heather Hutt of District 10 presents him with a Council certificate recognizing his retirement from professional basketball and his work with local youth, KTLA reported.

Westbrook is a Los Angeles native and a former UCLA player. He announced his retirement in August after 18 NBA seasons, a career that included an MVP award, nine All Star selections and seven All NBA honors, according to Bleacher Report. He spent most of those years with the Oklahoma City Thunder before stints with the Rockets, Wizards, Lakers, Clippers, Nuggets and Kings. Bleacher Report remembered him as a triple double machine, known for the explosiveness and energy he brought to the court, and for the impact he made on each community he was part of.

His farewell message on X was short. “Sometimes you don’t even know when you’ve already watched the end,” Westbrook wrote. “You had to be there. And now it’s over.”

The certificate also recognizes the Westbrook Why Not? Foundation, which he started in 2012. The foundation works with underserved communities on education, workforce development and access to mental health resources, KTLA reported. Hutt’s district covers Arlington Heights, Koreatown, Mid City, Olympic Park, Palms, South Robertson, West Adams, West Pico and Wilshire Center, according to ClutchPoints. Alongside the retirement, Hutt will acknowledge his efforts to help young people and support communities throughout Los Angeles, the outlet reported.

The morning ceremony puts Westbrook in a run of hometown honors for Los Angeles athletes this season, after Lisa Leslie’s statue went up at Star Plaza outside Crypto.com Arena. This one comes on paper rather than in bronze, from the city that raised him.