Watch John Clayton Rock a Slayer T-Shirt on ESPN
Earlier this month, when the Oklahoma City Thunder made the trip to Los Angeles to play whatever is left of Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, Russell Westbrook – the NBA’s obligatory “fashion guy” – showed up to the job rocking a ripped Slayer shirt with a bandana, stylish glasses and a striped undershirt with thumbholes.
You know, his Casual Friday look.
It wasn’t even close to being the most outlandish outfit Westbrook has worn to a game, of course, but it was enough to make everyone scratch their heads because, well, just look at it. (Also, we’re pretty sure he’s never heard Reign in Blood.)
Anyway, there’s a possibility Russ was paying homage to ESPN‘s John Clayton, who did a hilarious “This Is SportsCenter” commercial a few years back in which he played a stay-at-home blogger with a deep-rooted love for Slayer. Seeing as the two seem to share an appreciation for the band (in addition to the fact that they own the same shirt), people couldn’t help but compare the two.
Russell Westbrook channeling John Clayton #ThisIsSC pic.twitter.com/y5SnlAgfVG
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 9, 2016
Ask Clayton who wore it better, though, and he’ll graciously throw the alley-oop to Westbrook.
“[Westbrook] had to work to get into this thing,” Clayton said on SportsCenter. “When you have to work that hard and to give appreciation to Slayer, I’ve got to give it to Russell. So keep shooting those shots and keep the fashion going.”
Keep wearing crazy outfits and keep jacking up shots? That’s music to Westbrook’s ears.