With a rebound off an air ball with nine minutes left in the third quarter Wednesday, Russell Westbrook added another historic bullet point to his résumé, becoming the first player to average a triple-double in multiple seasons.
With a tally of 18 rebounds, the 29-year-old then required just 16 rebounds against the Grizzlies to accomplish the feat and he did just that even before the third quarter was done with as the Thunder emerged 137-123 winners.
Westbrook averaged 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds and 10.4 assists in his 2016-17 MVP season when he was the first player since Oscar Robertson in 1961-62 to average a triple-double. But after doing it again this season, he has succeeded in breaking into uncharted territory.
"I'm very, very thankful and blessed, man, to go out and compete", Westbrook told reporters after the game. It doesn't take more than a glance at his halftime box score to see how singularly focused he was. It only makes sense that it would this season as well. The star point guard addressed that while speaking with reporters on Wednesday. Maybe we should ask James Harden.
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Westbrook was a lot further down the list (2200; 22:1). But this time, the accomplishment is going to be a little tainted in the eyes of some. "I'm not sure if it's his last season or not, but he's somebody I've always looked up to as a brother, and he's done so much for me and this organization".
Westbrook pushed back against the stat-padding narrative that has built around him over the past year after shootaround Wednesday morning. A win here could be massive for the Thunder in this race for playoff positioning and they're a dominant 7-0 ATS in the last seven home meetings against the Grizzlies. He was clearly gunning for rebounds.
George's offense was a microcosm for how the Thunder played all night on that end, knocking down 55.3 percent of its shots on 32 assists, tying an Oklahoma City-era record with 20 made threes on 43 attempts and a whopping 30 fast break points.
With the help of his teammates, Westbrook reached the mark, including a career-high 20 rebounds in the Thunder's season finale against the Grizzlies.
