Hey everyone, for Complex News, I'm Justin Block.
It only took one season, but within months, basketball's triple-double went from one
of the rarest statistical feats in the game to a commonplace statline and not just for
Russell Westbrook either.
Yes, Russ broke the 55-year-old single-season triple-double record this year with 42, but
he only made up 36.8 percent of the league total.
In fact, this season set the NBA record for total triple-doubles with 114.
Individual triple-double machines like Westbrook, James Harden, Draymond Green and LeBron James
all deserve praise for putting up numbers, but we can't lose sight of this: Team wins
are the ultimate goal in the NBA.
Don't get me wrong: Watching our superstars score, board, and dish their way to triple-doubles
is a joy to watch.
It turns ugly when players blatantly chase personal stat-lines.
And when I say ugly, I mean it can get REALLY ugly.
Let's take this classic Ricky Davis play for example.
With six seconds left in a 2003 game between the Cavs and Jazz, Davis was on the cusp of
achieving the rare feat.
But his team already had a 25 point lead, and just needed to inbound the ball and run
out the clock.
Davis had other plans.
Stuck at 26 points, 12 assists, and 9 rebounds, Davis thought he could easily finesse a 10th
rebound for a triple-double.
So he shot at his own basket and grabbed the supposed rebound:
Davis really thought he was slick too.
But the NBA didn't count the bullshit rebound, and DeShawn Stevenson fouled him hard in response.
After the game, then Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan denounced Davis, saying:
"I was proud of DeShawn, and I would have knocked him down harder.
They can put me in jail for saying that, but that's the way it is."
Here's what Sloan's "but that's the way it is" really means: Don't start playing
for yourself during a blowout, ESPECIALLY if your team is losing.
In 2011, Wizards center JaVale McGee tried it, and he ended up looking foolish.
While his team was getting blown out by the Bulls, McGee needed just one more point to
reach a triple-double.
Watching McGee desperately try to score was like watching a dog try and catch its own
tail.
Take a look at this mess:
McGee eventually got his bucket, but mucked up a winnable game trying it.
Putting his team in jeopardy while trying to chase a triple-double is something Warriors
star Draymond Green knows all too well.
During a January 2016 game against the 76ers, Green's determination to get one more assist
and complete his triple-double nearly caused the Warriors to blow the game.
After the game, he felt embarrassed, knowing he had demeaned the 76ers and his own team,
saying:
"We started turning the ball over due to my selfish unselfishness, and it was all downhill
from there.
Could you tell?
It looked bad.
It felt bad."
Even Russell Westbrook, the triple-double god, gets annoyed when the game becomes so
focused on triple-doubles.
It's the wins that matter to him the most, not the stats:
Russell, we get it.
You're a maniac competitor just trying to play your game, even if your teammates sometimes
help you grab precious rebounds.
But at least you're playing for your team, and not yourself.
That's the news for now, but for more on the NBA, be sure to subscribe to Complex on YouTube
today.
For Complex News, I'm Justin Block.
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