Welcome to Triple-Double Watch, a weekly check-in on everyone’s favorite arbitrary milestone of round, base-ten numbers.
As you probably heard, James Harden made some history last week. Not only did the bearded wonder put up the most points scored in a game this season with 60, but it was the most points ever scored while recording a triple-double. Russell Westbrook raised the bar last year with 57 points, breaking the previous mark of 53 held by Wilt Chamberlain since 1968. Chamberlain also pulled 32 rebounds in that game, but back then nobody in the league was over 6-foot-5 and Chamberlain was actually 8-feet tall in real life.
Harden’s bananas performance came with 10 boards and 11 dimes, and he even added four steals and a block for good measure. We’re roughly three-fifths through the season and Harden’s staked his claim as the frontrunner for MVP. Now atop his resume sits an 86.5 Triple-Double Score, the highest TDS anyone’s posted all year.
Terry Rozier stepped into the limelight when he stepped into the starting lineup for the Celtics. With Kyrie Irving sidelined, Rozier drew his first career start and added his name to the triple-double dossier. Rozier has been an effectual backup in Boston but showed he’s capable of a larger role. Putting up your inaugural triple-double over the floundering Knicks is a good place to start.
I’d like to welcome Nikola Jokic back to this space for the second week in a row. The Joker threw down a tasty 29-13-14 in a big win over the Thunder. Denver and Oklahoma City are two fickle teams in the thick of the Western Conference playoff picture, jockeying for position with each other.
Westbrook, the Avant Guard and triple-double king, added yet another notch to his running tally. He now has one for each week of the season and compiled twice as many as his next-closest competition, LeBron James.
Next: Nylon Calculus Week 16 in Review: Trades and Westbrook’s variables
Just like anything else, not all triple-doubles were created equal. While Nicolas Batum got past the bouncer and waltzed into the triple-double club, he did just about the bare minimum to get there. It may not have been the most impressive game, but it did help his team get a win. On the season, teams are victorious 70.2 percent of the time when their player achieves triple-double status.