*In today’s SportsBits, Russell Westbrook is walking away from basketball after 18 NBA seasons, a medical examiner has determined what caused Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke’s death, and a Fox Sports personality is calling on NBA Commissioner Adam Silver to “shut down” the WNBA amid criticism of the league.
Russell Westbrook Retires After 18 NBA Seasons
Russell Westbrook is calling it a career.
The 37-year-old announced his NBA retirement on social media after 18 seasons and stints with seven teams.
“Sometimes you don’t even know when you’ve already watched the end,” Westbrook wrote alongside a career video narrated by actor Michael B. Jordan. “You had to be there. And now it’s over.”
Westbrook reportedly had offseason offers from the Sacramento Kings and Washington Wizards but chose to leave the game on his own terms.
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Selected No. 4 in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics, Westbrook never played in Seattle because the franchise moved to Oklahoma City that summer. He would spend 11 seasons with the Thunder and become one of the defining players in franchise history.
Alongside Kevin Durant and James Harden, Westbrook helped Oklahoma City reach the 2012 NBA Finals, where the Thunder lost to the Miami Heat. After Durant departed for Golden State in 2016, Westbrook remained in Oklahoma City and signed an extension.
He leaves as the Thunder’s career leader in scoring, assists, rebounds and steals.
Brandon Clarke’s Cause of Death Revealed
The death of Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke was caused by the effects of heroin and cocaine, according to the County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner.
His death was ruled an accident.
According to the medical examiner, Clarke was found unresponsive in his bedroom at approximately 5 p.m. May 11. Paramedics pronounced him dead at 5:15 p.m. His agency announced his death the following day.
Clarke was 29.
The Grizzlies selected the forward in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft, and he spent his entire NBA career in Memphis. Clarke finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting following his 2019-20 debut season, although injuries complicated the later years of his career.
Before his death, the Grizzlies had announced that Clarke would miss the remainder of the 2025-26 season while rehabilitating a right calf strain.
Following Clarke’s death, ARISE2Read, a Memphis nonprofit focused on improving literacy rates and supported by his foundation, received hundreds of donations.
WNBA Faces Call to Be ‘Shut Down‘
The WNBA is drawing another round of heated debate after Fox Sports personality Aaron Torres called on NBA Commissioner Adam Silver to consider temporarily shutting down the league.
Torres made the provocative suggestion after Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark received a technical foul for accidentally bumping a referee during a game Saturday. The WNBA later rescinded the technical, meaning Clark will not be suspended over it.
“I seriously think it’s time for Adam Silver to consider shutting down the WNBA,” Torres wrote on X, arguing that the league “can’t go a literal day without a national embarrassment.”
The remarks quickly generated pushback.
“This is a bit extreme, my guy,” one person responded, arguing that professional sports leagues inevitably experience problems while developing.
Another questioned the criticism by pointing to the very ingredients that often attract sports audiences: “Nobody wants hard fouls, drama, and fights?”
The controversy arrives as the WNBA has experienced increased attention and growth while also facing heightened scrutiny surrounding officiating, player confrontations and other disputes.
Torres’ comments represent his own call for action, not an announcement or indication that Silver or the NBA plans to shut down the WNBA.
From Russell Westbrook closing the book on a remarkable 18-season run to new findings surrounding Brandon Clarke’s death and another heated debate about the WNBA, today’s SportsBits span celebration, loss and controversy across professional basketball.
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