Mr. Triple-Double has etched his name in history.
In the Washington Wizards' 133-132 overtime win over the Indiana Pacers, Russell Westbrook recorded his 181st career triple-double to join Oscar Robertson atop the all-time list.
Westbrook secured his league-leading 35th triple-double of the season with this assist to Bradley Beal late in the third quarter:
THE HISTORY-MAKING ASSIST!@russwest44 to @RealDealBeal23 pic.twitter.com/RlfDuGmFZf
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) May 9, 2021
Robertson, who amassed 181 career triple-doubles over 14 seasons in the NBA, has been one of Westbrook's most vocal supporters and couldn't be happier for the nine-time All-Star to overtake him in the record books.
“There’s no doubt about it. I hope he gets it,” Robertson told The New York Times earlier this week.
“I totally enjoy the way Westbrook plays. He’s a dynamic individual. They’ve moved him around to different teams and I don’t know why, because I think he’s one of the star guards in basketball. I guess they thought that when he went to Washington that he would not be that effective, but, man, he’s done a tremendous job.”
The 32-year-old added another piece of history on the night, passing Rod Strickland to climb to 12th in all-time assists.
Congrats to @russwest44 of the @WashWizards for moving up to 12th on the all-time ASSISTS list! pic.twitter.com/A4yZ0opZHC
— NBA (@NBA) May 8, 2021
To cap off his historic night, Westbrook came up with a pair of huge plays in overtime, draining a pair of free throws with 1.0 second remaining and blocking Caris LeVert's 3-point attempt to ice the win.
"It's unbelievable man, truly blessed and thankful, give all the thanks to the man above for just allowing me and giving me unbelievable talent to go out and compete," Westbrook said post-game.
"I take so much pride in going out and leaving everything I have out on the floor and tonight was another one of those nights where you gotta grind it out and figure it out.
"I have unbelievable teammates over the years and even now and organisations and I'm just thankful for everybody along the way along this journey."
He finished with 33 points, 19 rebounds and 15 assists, while Bradley Beal, who sat out the overtime period with an ankle injury, poured in 50 points on 19-of-31 shooting.
After recording just eight triple-doubles across his first six seasons, Westbrook has notched a remarkable 173 over the past seven seasons.
With 21 triple-doubles in his last 25 games, Westbrook will likely break the record this season with four games remaining and extend his lead over Magic Johnson, who is third in NBA history with 138, followed by Jason Kidd's 107.
LeBron James, who sits fifth all-time, is the closest active player with 99, while James Harden (58) and Nikola Jokic (56) are the only other active players in the top 10.
Entering tonight's game, Westbrook is averaging 21.8 points, 11.4 rebounds and 11.4 per game this season. He has secured his fourth season averaging a triple-double after becoming the first player since Robertson to achieve the feat in 2016-17.
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