Russell Westbrook joins Wilt Chamberlain and himself with 20-rebound, 20-assist night

Westbrook writes history again with 20-assist, 20-rebound game

Russell Westbrook’s statistical achievements are putting him in smaller and smaller company — more recently on lists where only he and one other legend have been.

That trend continued on Monday, when Westbrook registered an eye-popping 21 rebounds and 24 assists in Washington’s 154-141 victory over Indiana. The only two players in NBA history to collect over 20 rebounds and 20 assists in the same game before: Wilt Chamberlain and Russell Westbrook.

The former Kia MVP first accomplished the feat in 2019, while Chamberlain broke that ground some 51 years earlier.

Westbrook’s numeric assault on the NBA record books is also drawing him ever closer to the hallowed stat-stuffing ground. Monday’s performance (which included 14 points) marked his 178th career triple-double — just three fewer than Oscar Robertson’s all-time record.

As if all that isn’t enough, Westbrook is now statistically assured of averaging a triple-double for the entire season — the fourth time he will have reached that milestone. Before him, Robertson was the only player in NBA history to have averaged a triple-double in a full season.

Westbrook’s late-season surge is helping the Wizards inch closer towards securing a berth in The Play-In Tournament. A win-or-go-home scenario against Westbrook’s relentless production, as well as Wizards All-Star guard Bradley Beal, could make them an unappealing matchup at the edge of the playoff picture.