Basketball player Russell Westbrook spotted wearing a Rolex

Russell Westbrook was photographed in a candid car setting, wrist resting visibly forward, giving a clear look at one of Rolex's most opulent catalog entries. The watch — a Rolex Day-Date 40 in 18K yellow gold with a diamond-set bezel and black dial — sits naturally on Westbrook's wrist alongside what appears to be an orange rubber strap accent, typical of his layered accessory approach. The sighting aligns with his well-documented appetite for high-specification Rolex references.

The reference 228398TBR is the Day-Date 40's top-tier baguette bezel configuration. Introduced when Rolex expanded the Day-Date to 40mm in 2015, the 228398TBR houses the calibre 3255 — Rolex's flagship in-house movement, featuring a Chronergy escapement, 70-hour power reserve, and a bidirectional self-winding Perpetual rotor. The dial shows baguette-cut diamond hour markers against a black sunray-brushed surface, with the trademark day window at 12 o'clock and date aperture at 3 o'clock. The bezel carries 36 individually set baguette diamonds in a channel setting, a process Rolex classifies under its dedicated gem-setting atelier in Geneva.

Collector-wise, the 228398TBR occupies a specific niche: it is unambiguously a statement piece rather than an understated tool watch. Among Day-Date variants, baguette bezel references consistently hold value on the secondary market and attract buyers from entertainment, sports, and fashion worlds. The President bracelet in 18K yellow gold — a design unchanged in its iconic semi-circular three-piece link architecture since 1956 — remains one of the most recognizable luxury bracelets in watchmaking.

Westbrook's watch wardrobe has long reflected his fashion-forward identity. The nine-time NBA All-Star has consistently worn Rolex across his career, gravitating toward high-jewellery and precious metal configurations rather than sport references. The Day-Date is a deliberate choice — historically worn by heads of state and cultural leaders, its symbolism as a prestige object is unambiguous.

At retail, the 228398TBR lists at approximately $75,200 USD — a figure that reflects the gold content, movement quality, and gem-setting labor. On the grey market, strong demand for jewellery Day-Date references keeps pricing at or slightly above retail, making this a stable if not explosive performer for secondary buyers.