When Russell Westbrook isn’t destroying opposing NBA point guards, he loves giving back to the kids.
Westbrook recently made dreams come true for Janneh — a 13-year-old boy from Moore, Oklahoma, who has spent the last six months at aChildren’s Rehabilitation Center — after he was hit by a bullet from a drive-by shooting that hit him in the neck, crushing his third vertebrae and leaving him paralyzed from the neck down.
His one Christmas wish was to meet Russell Westbrook.
So on Monday afternoon, Westbrook met Janneh — after showing up alone and unannounced.
“We literally just got a call that Russell Westbrook was in our lobby ready to see Janneh,” said Melissa Richey, director of communications at the Children’s Center Rehabilitation Hospital.
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“The way that it happened was exactly how it should’ve happened,” Richey said.
“That’s something that, I think, made it even more special because you could tell it wasn’t a publicity stunt,” she said. “It was the kindness out of his own heart to take time out of his day, knowing he had another event that night, to take time to do that was really cool for us to see that.”
“Russ had to do some of the talking to get him going, but once Janneh started getting comfortable, the smack talk started,” Richey said. “It was really funny between the two of them. Russ was such a great sport and gave it to him back. He didn’t hold back with him. It was really fun to watch the two of them together.”
Westbrook spent almost an hour with Janneh — who claims the Cleveland Cavaliers as his favorite team. Thursday’s Thunder vs. Cavs matchup should be epic for him.