Hall of Famer says Russell Westbrook tries to get triple-doubles while Oscar Robertson naturally got them

No two players in NBA history have been better at racking up triple-doubles than Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook. Westbrook is the league’s all-time leader in career triple-doubles with 199, and Oscar Robertson has the second-most of any player to his name at 181.

They’re also the only two NBA players to ever average a triple-double in a full season. Robertson accomplished that feat in the 1961-62 campaign, while Westbrook has averaged a triple-double on four separate occasions.

Former Golden State Warriors star Rick Barry — who played against Robertson during his time in the NBA — claimed that Westbrook goes out of his way to rack up triple-doubles while Robertson got them naturally when he played.

“The difference between him and Westbrook is Westbrook was trying to get triple-doubles,” Barry said. “Oscar wasn’t trying to get triple-doubles and he did it, and he almost did it for about three or four seasons.”

Westbrook can still stuff the stat sheet at his advanced age, as he’s averaging 11.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game in a bench role with the Denver Nuggets so far in the 2024-25 regular season. In a recent game against his former team in the Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov. 6, he turned back the clock with a 29-point, six-rebound and six-assist performance in order to hand the Thunder their first loss of the season.

But his days of averaging a triple-double seem to be behind him at this stage of his NBA career. He hasn’t averaged double digits in points, rebounds and assists per game since the 2020-21 campaign, when he played for the Washington Wizards.

While Barry believes that Westbrook tries to get triple-doubles while Robertson got them without trying, there isn’t an overwhelming amount of evidence to back up his claim. After all, when Westbrook averaged triple-doubles, he played for Thunder and Wizards teams that weren’t exactly loaded with talent and asked a lot out of him on both sides of the ball.

Instead of debating which of Westbrook or Robertson had a greater gift for totaling triple-doubles, folks should appreciate both players for the unique skill sets that they showed off during their prime years. It could be a while until the NBA will see another player who’s a triple-double machine like they were.