No one has been more misunderstood than Russell Westbrook. The dog that he is on the court often gets confused with who he is as a person off the court. But say what you want about Westbrook, he is having a historical season with the Washington Wizards that is a result of hard work throughout his career.
On Saturday night, Westbrook did the unthinkable by tying Oscar Robertson’s record of 181 triple-doubles with 33 points, 19 rebounds and 15 assists in Washington’s 133-132 overtime victory in Indiana. Westbrook made a pair of free throws with one second left in overtime to give the Wizards a one-point lead, and then blocked Caris LeVert’s jump-shot to seal the victory.
“There’s no one in the history of the game that can do what he does throughout the stat sheet,” Coach Scott Brooks said. “He’s going to go down as the second greatest point guard in history behind Magic Johnson.”
Russell Westbrook secures his 35th triple-double of the season with 33 points, 19 rebounds & 15 assists, tying Oscar Robertson for the most triple-doubles all-time with the 181st of his career.
“I’m so grateful, thankful, and blessed.” #DCAboveAll pic.twitter.com/pDvM5jmr9U
— Carita Parks (@CaritaCParks) May 9, 2021
In addition to the tying the triple-double record, Westbrook was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the week of May 3-9. He averaged 22.3 points, 18.3 assists and 17.3 rebounds per game, helping lead the Wizards to a 3-1 record.
Westbrook became the first player in NBA history to average 22+ points, 18+ assists and 17+ rebounds over a four-game span. He led the NBA in assists and rebounds per game during the week. In the Wizards’ home victory over the Pacers on Monday, Westbrook tallied 14 points, 24 assists and 21 rebounds, which marked the third game in NBA history of 20+ assists and 20+ rebounds.
The 24 assists tied his career-high and tied the Wizards’ franchise high. He followed that performance with 29 points, 17 assists and 12 rebounds in a one-point loss in Milwaukee. The next night in Tampa versus the Raptors, he posted 13 points, 17 rebounds and 17 assists in the team’s 131-129 overtime win over the Raptors.
“Every game I give everything I have until there’s nothing left in the tank,” Westbrook said.
During the week, Westbrook posted a triple-double in all four games, becoming the first player in franchise history to have 15 or more assists in four straight games, and the first NBA player to accomplish this since Rajon Rondo in 2016. He also posted his fourth streak of at least four games with at least 12 rebounds this season and fifth streak since 2019.
Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons joins Westbrook as the only other guard in the league since 2018 to have a streak of four games with at least 12 rebounds.
On the season, Westbrook is averaging 22.0 points, 11.6 rebounds and a league-leading 11.5 assists per game. He has 35 triple-doubles on the season and is one game away from breaking Oscar Robertson all-time triple-double record.