Rockets' Kevin Durant reveals emotional reaction to Thunder legend Russell Westbrook retiring

Rockets’ Kevin Durant reveals emotional reaction to Thunder legend Russell Westbrook retiring originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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Russell Westbrook has had a storied career, playing for several teams and making an impact on every organization he joined. Westbrook became known as a triple-double machine, a skill that made him valuable to every team he played for as he contributed in so many different ways.

Throughout the summer, Westbrook was looking for his next opportunity, but no contending team showed interest. He ultimately made the sudden decision to retire from the NBA.

“Sometimes you don’t even know when you’ve already watched the end. You had to be there. And now it’s over,” Westbrook posted.

Some are still having a hard time believing that he is actually done with his playing career. However, others believe he might not be finished just yet. Former Memphis Grizzlies star Zach Randolph believes Westbrook could still return to the court.

“This man is supposed to be in the league for another 3-4 years at least. I’d like to see him with the Heat. Brodie got a lot left in him. I just saw his little brother yesterday Ray. He might be back,” Randolph said.

Westbrook’s longtime friend Kevin Durant played alongside him with the Oklahoma City Thunder, where the two came close to winning an NBA championship together. Durant revealed that he was a little sad when the retirement announcement came out.

“I was a little sad. I thought Russ still had 5 or 6 more years left. He’s an athletic body that can still impact the game positively. Congrats to him on an iconic career,” Durant said.

There is no doubt that Westbrook’s decision to call it a career came as a surprise. Durant knows what his former teammate is capable of and how much he means to the game of basketball.

Westbrook gave everything he could to the game and meant so much to his teammates throughout his career. Although Durant and Westbrook had a bit of a feud after the two-time NBA champion left Oklahoma City, they still care about each other.

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