WESTBROOK!!

[jstasyk1121]

Just finished off a 20-20-20 game!! Amazing

[mrchipz]

i have said this for years and i will say it again.

westbrook is the most under appreciated player in nba histroy.

we dont realize what we are witnessing has a slim chance to ever be done again.

we are so used to his greatness we just dont appreciate how amazing his stat lines really are.

[tommyfro21]

I’m not really a Westbrook guy, but I’m glad I flipped over to the game in the 3rd quarter so I could ultimately see history made. Considering it’s only ever happened twice, it was a pretty cool moment.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[fb5b]

I agree, Westbrook is vastly underappreciated, to be averaging a triple double in 3 straight years is crazy, 20-30 yrs down the line, he'll be considered an all time great

[chuckerrrr]

Guys is a beast. I respect him. The fact that he has also stayed in OKC to me is also mad respect. Dont know if it will ever happen but id love to see him win a Chip. It seems MVP wasn’t enough to earn appreciation from some.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[pgisback]

Westbrook is amazing... which is why it's so surprising they are battling to not be the 8th seed. Crazy.

[mrchipz]

Guys is a beast. I respect him. The fact that he has also stayed in OKC to me is also mad respect. Dont know if it will ever happen but id love to see him win a Chip. It seems MVP wasn’t enough to earn appreciation from some.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

yup me too. loyalty to its finest. and 3 straight years averaging a triple double is just nuts.

[byronscott4ever]

I’m not sure what is harder to fathom—that many boards for a guard or Wilt handing out that many dimes

[dcarado]

Westbrook is amazing... which is why it's so surprising they are battling to not be the 8th seed. Crazy.

Being an OKC fan, this is probably the biggest reason I think his legacy will be different than that of a guy like DWade, or a HOF guy that just never won it all, like Stockton. He is no doubt one of the most dominant point guards ever, BUT, does he make his teammates better?

[mrchipz]

Being an OKC fan, this is probably the biggest reason I think his legacy will be different than that of a guy like DWade, or a HOF guy that just never won it all, like Stockton. He is no doubt one of the most dominant point guards ever, BUT, does he make his teammates better?

Paul George having the best season of his career id say yes.

[the27guy]

Two triple doubles in the same game? Unreal.

He’s unreal. He plays with more ferocity and energy then anyone I can think of. His athletic abilities are unparalleled.

Here’s my best comment about him that I can come up with. Good Russ is one of the greatest players of all time. Bad Russ is the most detrimental player in the league. Bad Russ has come out a lot this season. His shooting stats, which I’ll round up on, are 43%, 29%, 67%. At his level of usage he’s arguably the most damaging offensive player to his teams winning in the league. Yes, I get it, he averages a triple double. But in 2019, when people understand how efficiency works, there are legitimate debates whether Russell Westbrook is good. To be clear, I love watching him play. I am a fan of his. But I don’t think he’s a top 2 player on his team.

He’s a sure fire hall of famer who gives your team a chance to win (or lose) every game. I love watching him play.


But he’s just a conundrum. Man I hope they face and beat the dubs in round one.

[bootan]

Westbrook is amazing... which is why it's so surprising they are battling to not be the 8th seed. Crazy.

because getting stats doesnt always mean getting Ws

[pejc300]

Two triple doubles in the same game? Unreal.

He’s unreal. He plays with more ferocity and energy then anyone I can think of. His athletic abilities are unparalleled.

Here’s my best comment about him that I can come up with. Good Russ is one of the greatest players of all time. Bad Russ is the most detrimental player in the league. Bad Russ has come out a lot this season. His shooting stats, which I’ll round up on, are 43%, 29%, 67%. At his level of usage he’s arguably the most damaging offensive player to his teams winning in the league. Yes, I get it, he averages a triple double. But in 2019, when people understand how efficiency works, there are legitimate debates whether Russell Westbrook is good. To be clear, I love watching him play. I am a fan of his. But I don’t think he’s a top 2 player on his team.

He’s a sure fire hall of famer who gives your team a chance to win (or lose) every game. I love watching him play.


But he’s just a conundrum. Man I hope they face and beat the dubs in round one.

This is a great post.

[Gem10collection]

Picked up this monster the other day. Guaranteed HOF and averaged triple doubles THREE years in a row!!!

[jj2]

I can't wait to see how people try to downplay this...

[hairyangryfella]

I can't wait to see how people try to downplay this...

Well here it comes.

I love that he got 20 assists, he's capable of this a lot.
The rebounds though are purely due to team setup. He had 15 defensive rebounds while his center had... ONE. Not that there's necessarily anything wrong playing to your team setup (it helps that it was against the Lakers and his parents were in attendance), but anybody overly impressed with his rebound numbers isn't looking very deeply into it.

PS, fully agree with Adam.

[AdamMcDermott88]

Call it a Triple Veinte!

[rustywest]

But I don’t think he’s a top 2 player on his team.


This has to be the most idiotic statement I've ever heard :cry:

[theleica]

This is one of those conundrums where I think it is a great feat and insane but at the same time don’t love the optics on it.

With 1:04 left in the game and up 16, Donovan empties the bench and Diallo walks on the court to take Westbrook’s spot. Westbrook refuses. Adams misses the free throw (on purpose?) and Westbrook grabs the 20th rebound.

[rats60]

Two triple doubles in the same game? Unreal.

He’s unreal. He plays with more ferocity and energy then anyone I can think of. His athletic abilities are unparalleled.

Here’s my best comment about him that I can come up with. Good Russ is one of the greatest players of all time. Bad Russ is the most detrimental player in the league. Bad Russ has come out a lot this season. His shooting stats, which I’ll round up on, are 43%, 29%, 67%. At his level of usage he’s arguably the most damaging offensive player to his teams winning in the league. Yes, I get it, he averages a triple double. But in 2019, when people understand how efficiency works, there are legitimate debates whether Russell Westbrook is good. To be clear, I love watching him play. I am a fan of his. But I don’t think he’s a top 2 player on his team.

He’s a sure fire hall of famer who gives your team a chance to win (or lose) every game. I love watching him play.


But he’s just a conundrum. Man I hope they face and beat the dubs in round one.

Do you feel the same about LeBron James? Like Westbrook, James is shooting under 36% outside 3 feet this year. It is tough to win games when your best player is taking 10+ bad (low percentage) shots every game. Also, Westbrook is normally a very good free throw shooter, over 80% for his career. I am not sure why he has been so bad the last 2 seasons. Both guys should be taking fewer shots per game. In this era of advanced analytics, I can't believe that their coaches don't have the data to show which shots they should and shouldn't be taking to help their teams win.

[nfunk]

Two triple doubles in the same game? Unreal.

He’s unreal. He plays with more ferocity and energy then anyone I can think of. His athletic abilities are unparalleled.

Here’s my best comment about him that I can come up with. Good Russ is one of the greatest players of all time. Bad Russ is the most detrimental player in the league. Bad Russ has come out a lot this season. His shooting stats, which I’ll round up on, are 43%, 29%, 67%. At his level of usage he’s arguably the most damaging offensive player to his teams winning in the league. Yes, I get it, he averages a triple double. But in 2019, when people understand how efficiency works, there are legitimate debates whether Russell Westbrook is good. To be clear, I love watching him play. I am a fan of his. But I don’t think he’s a top 2 player on his team.

He’s a sure fire hall of famer who gives your team a chance to win (or lose) every game. I love watching him play.


But he’s just a conundrum. Man I hope they face and beat the dubs in round one.
Dude.

Facts:

(1) He is good
(2) He is a top 2 player on this team

Come on now!

[cshelb34687]

Just finished off a 20-20-20 game!! Amazing

Holy shite!

[spurs50fan]

Simply incredible! Had his friend with him in spirit last night

[RandyC]

Did you'll watch the game? I watched it and it was Russell hunting rebounds by not playing defense and his teammates shooting every single time Russell passed them the ball. He also attempted 23 FGs to get 20 points.

[DajuanWagner]

This has to be the most idiotic statement I've ever heard :cry:



Agreed. I've heard a lot of idiotic statements and that one is #1. In fairness, maybe somebody hacked his account and played an April Fools joke on Adam because I am sure that Adam can't be that delusional, right? Also, in fairness, he says that he is pretty busy this time of year, so maybe he was too busy to think clearly, if he did, in fact, post that and his account wasn't hacked...…….

[jstasyk1121]

This is one of those conundrums where I think it is a great feat and insane but at the same time don’t love the optics on it.

With 1:04 left in the game and up 16, Donovan empties the bench and Diallo walks on the court to take Westbrook’s spot. Westbrook refuses. Adams misses the free throw (on purpose?) and Westbrook grabs the 20th rebound.

if im being honest...if it was just to grab another trip doub i get it...like cmon man...you avg a triple double for the last 200+ games...but for something that only ONE other person has done...and im that close...yea im going for it! maybe the optics on rebound 20 arent great...but that doesnt mean all 20 of them are bad...he still has to get the rebounds...

and to the other post about how Adams doesnt get them...so Russ can...i get it...but at the same time Russ still has to get them rather than the opposing team get them...its not like they are just all free and he does nothing to get them...

i dont know...i just think some people really dislike the guy...yea he is having a very poor shooting season...but to me its still crazy to say he doesnt help his team...just the idea of him having the ball creates headaches for the opponent and im sure the game plan is pretty focused on how to slow down/contain russ...

and for like 75% of the season they were a top 4 team in the West...pushing for top 2 possibly...and then they just had a slump and since its so tight a slump dropped them all the way down to 7th/8th range...its not like they have been fighting for a spot all year...they were REALLY good for majority of the season and then the last 20-ish games they stunk it up...

they were 37-19 on Feb. 11th--3rd place in the West...1gb of Den and 3gb of GSW...they were one of the best teams in the league...PG13 was rolling...RW was on that crazy streak of like 10 straight triple doubles

then since then they have gone 8-14...PG13 was banged up off and on...and they just in a funk but you cant have that out West...I think they are a pretty dangerous team if they can avoid the 8 seed obviously

[the27guy]

This has to be the most idiotic statement I've ever heard :cry:

Haha. You’re entitled to your opinion. I personally feel that both Paul George and Steven Adams help you win more games than Russell Westbrook.

[the27guy]

Do you feel the same about LeBron James? Like Westbrook, James is shooting under 36% outside 3 feet this year. It is tough to win games when your best player is taking 10+ bad (low percentage) shots every game. Also, Westbrook is normally a very good free throw shooter, over 80% for his career. I am not sure why he has been so bad the last 2 seasons. Both guys should be taking fewer shots per game. In this era of advanced analytics, I can't believe that their coaches don't have the data to show which shots they should and shouldn't be taking to help their teams win.

I don’t know how I feel about Lebron’s year, to be honest. He doesn’t have the same type of good players around him that Westbrook has. Why he went to LA, no idea.

To be clear, I really am a fan of Russ. I love passion and energy on the court and his is UNPARALLELED. He’s perhaps the only guy who could up a line like last night.

Let me also add that his first triple double year he went on a string of like 20 games where he nearly single handedly won games for his team! I would have voted him MVP over Harden that year despite not being nearly as efficient as Harden. But his efficiency is so so bad now. It’s not defensible anymore. He’s not additive (on average) as an offensive player this season - though some games he’s still incredibly dominant.

Still a great feet last night. Still deserves attention. Only player but wilt to accomplish it? Amazing.

[Siberian13]

Agreed. I've heard a lot of idiotic statements and that one is #1. In fairness, maybe somebody hacked his account and played an April Fools joke on Adam because I am sure that Adam can't be that delusional, right? Also, in fairness, he says that he is pretty busy this time of year, so maybe he was too busy to think clearly, if he did, in fact, post that and his account wasn't hacked...…….

He's actually known for this around here now :)

[RandyC]

I don’t know how I feel about Lebron’s year, to be honest. He doesn’t have the same type of good players around him that Westbrook has. Why he went to LA, no idea.

To be clear, I really am a fan of Russ. I love passion and energy on the court and his is UNPARALLELED. He’s perhaps the only guy who could up a line like last night.

Let me also add that his first triple double year he went on a string of like 20 games where he nearly single handedly won games for his team! I would have voted him MVP over Harden that year despite not being nearly as efficient as Harden. But his efficiency is so so bad now. It’s not defensible anymore. He’s not additive (on average) as an offensive player this season - though some games he’s still incredibly dominant.

Still a great feet last night. Still deserves attention. Only player but wilt to accomplish it? Amazing.

If you don't understand why he chose LA, you obviously have never lived in LA.

[IndySportsCards]

87 fantasy points last night! thanks Russell.

[gameissued]

Classic Russ. I saw this 20-20-20 game coming @ halftime. Good he went for it and got it but at the same time I personally put a couple of * ** *** right there the way it happened. Obviously those rebounds at the end.. but prior to that he had some super wide open shots near the paint but force-passed it in order to get up the assist numbers. Soo.. HE GOT IT!! But did so with some phoney assist/rebound numbers. 20-17-17 still a great game though.. I think Rondo's done something close to that before.

[Orangejello727]

Todays NBA = Great stat > Winning

[jgrann13]

He is so underappreciated. The most nit-picked player in NBA history. The guy is truly amazing at 6'3.

Lets not also forget that he has had 4 knee surgeries and started the season off with surgery. I would not even doubt that hes playing at 85% this year.

[cnewby]

Pretty sad that some can't even acknowledge how impressive this was.

[21Pittsburgh58]

I loved it!

That being said, it's definitely a 'shady' 20-20-20 due to the rebound hunting at the end. However, that being said again, it won't make a damn bit of difference in the record books! Hahahaha

Three straight years of averaging a triple double!?!?! INSANE

I can definitely see both sides of the Russ debate: Usage, TO's, shooting, stat hunting (which I don't believe is always the case but I do think he knows what he has), supposedly not making teammates better, hasn't won a ring (most NBA players), etc.

But if you can't see the greatness, heart, aggressiveness and hustle that he plays with on a night in, night out basis and at least acknowledge that - then that is bullsh*t and petty.

There are some very good posts in this thread that reflect all of this. Well done everyone!

[BigSeph]

Serious question for those who have a beef with him "hunting" this 20/20/20-

Do you think Wilt Chamberlain just stumbled into a 20/20/20 or do you think he was aware of it and played a certain way in order to "hunt" his?

The year he had so many assists (including his 20/20/20 game) and led the league in total assists, he did it because people called him selfish for getting all the points and rebounds in his career prior to that, and was trying to make a point. He would yell at teammates for screwing up his assists too. They traded him to the Lakers after that season because he was such a headache.

Go to 10:08 on this video and tell me Wilt wasn't a stat-chaser. He knew Hal Greer's NBA All-Star game record for points in a quarter was 19, and looked none too pleased when his record of 23 in a half was broken by Glen Rice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vShi7hQSL1k

"Wilt is a very goal-oriented person, and and under Alex (Hannum) he wanted to win a title and become the first center to lead the league in assists. He liked to pass to Hal Greer or myself, because we just caught it and shot it. Chet Walker usually caught the ball, took a dribble or two and then shot it - no assist for Wilt (under the assist rules of that time). So Wilt preferred to give the ball to us."

-Billy Cunningham

Guys who set these records don't usually just casually stumble into them. They chase records. And I'll guarantee you RWB knows the records and significant things he's done, and would act like Wilt if anybody ever broke them.

[no10pin]

Wilt's 100 point game is another example. The Warriors started fouling the Knicks while up 20 because they were trying to get him more chances.

Westbrook definitely does some stat chasing, but there are a ton of guys who do, and his numbers are just ridiculously impressive. Damn fine accomplishment last night, and I bought a Topps Chrome Westbrook RC just to have right afterwards.

[chuckerrrr]

Agree with this above.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[the27guy]

Wilt's 100 point game is another example. The Warriors started fouling the Knicks while up 20 because they were trying to get him more chances.

Westbrook definitely does some stat chasing, but there are a ton of guys who do, and his numbers are just ridiculously impressive. Damn fine accomplishment last night, and I bought a Topps Chrome Westbrook RC just to have right afterwards.

This is not something I've heard. Do you have a source?

It is well known that Wilt won the assist record because he wanted it though. That's clear.

[no10pin]

This is not something I've heard. Do you have a source?

It is well known that Wilt won the assist record because he wanted it though. That's clear.

I read this book ages ago, it's quoted several times on the Wiki page about his 100 point game.

https://www.amazon.com/Wilt-1962-Night-Points-Dawn/dp/1400051614

With six minutes remaining, the Knicks began intentionally fouling any Warrior except Chamberlain, keeping the ball out of the center's hands. New York also began moving the ball slowly and using as much of the shot clock as possible to leave fewer opportunities for Chamberlain to score. Effectively, they played the opposite of what a normal club would do if they faced a deficit, willingly giving up many easy points instead of making attempts to rally back.

Meschery said the Warriors lobbed the ball in from the sideline across the floor directly to Chamberlain, who would use his size and strength to get the ball. Chamberlain was the only Warrior to make a field goal in almost four minutes before Meschery made a jump shot at 4:15.

Philadelphia began quickly fouling New York with around four minutes left, reciprocating the intentional foul strategy. Warriors coach Frank McGuire at one point pulled out his entire starting five, save Chamberlain, and replaced them with bench players. The intention was to foul the Knicks, get the ball back after free throws and give Chamberlain the ball. Thus each team spent the last minutes fouling each other.

The Warriors ended with 25 personal fouls, and the Knicks with 32, and lost Imhoff and Willie Naulls with six fouls.

[Orangejello727]

Serious question for those who have a beef with him "hunting" this 20/20/20-

Do you think Wilt Chamberlain just stumbled into a 20/20/20 or do you think he was aware of it and played a certain way in order to "hunt" his?

The year he had so many assists (including his 20/20/20 game) and led the league in total assists, he did it because people called him selfish for getting all the points and rebounds in his career prior to that, and was trying to make a point. He would yell at teammates for screwing up his assists too. They traded him to the Lakers after that season because he was such a headache.

Go to 10:08 on this video and tell me Wilt wasn't a stat-chaser. He knew Hal Greer's NBA All-Star game record for points in a quarter was 19, and looked none too pleased when his record of 23 in a half was broken by Glen Rice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vShi7hQSL1k

"Wilt is a very goal-oriented person, and and under Alex (Hannum) he wanted to win a title and become the first center to lead the league in assists. He liked to pass to Hal Greer or myself, because we just caught it and shot it. Chet Walker usually caught the ball, took a dribble or two and then shot it - no assist for Wilt (under the assist rules of that time). So Wilt preferred to give the ball to us."

-Billy Cunningham

Guys who set these records don't usually just casually stumble into them. They chase records. And I'll guarantee you RWB knows the records and significant things he's done, and would act like Wilt if anybody ever broke them.


What would you say the game of basketball in the NBA is about? and should be about? How great individual stats are? Winning? Showboating?

If you choose the NBA game of basketball to center around individual stats, you are right... RWB is doing the best job in the NBA to do just that.

If you choose winning, you are wrong. ..RWB is not doing the best job in the NBA.

Its a difference in opinion here. I think winning championships are more important than great individual stats. Other seem to think individual stats is the most important piece in basketball.

If I had a choice.. Id rather have 3 championship rings over 3 year of great stats and no hardware. But thats just me!!

[the27guy]

I read this book ages ago, it's quoted several times on the Wiki page about his 100 point game.

https://www.amazon.com/Wilt-1962-Night-Points-Dawn/dp/1400051614

With six minutes remaining, the Knicks began intentionally fouling any Warrior except Chamberlain, keeping the ball out of the center's hands. New York also began moving the ball slowly and using as much of the shot clock as possible to leave fewer opportunities for Chamberlain to score. Effectively, they played the opposite of what a normal club would do if they faced a deficit, willingly giving up many easy points instead of making attempts to rally back.

Meschery said the Warriors lobbed the ball in from the sideline across the floor directly to Chamberlain, who would use his size and strength to get the ball. Chamberlain was the only Warrior to make a field goal in almost four minutes before Meschery made a jump shot at 4:15.

Philadelphia began quickly fouling New York with around four minutes left, reciprocating the intentional foul strategy. Warriors coach Frank McGuire at one point pulled out his entire starting five, save Chamberlain, and replaced them with bench players. The intention was to foul the Knicks, get the ball back after free throws and give Chamberlain the ball. Thus each team spent the last minutes fouling each other.

The Warriors ended with 25 personal fouls, and the Knicks with 32, and lost Imhoff and Willie Naulls with six fouls.

This is great detail. I need to read more about THE GAME. It's not something I'm well acquinted with.

It's interesting to note NY's roll in the 100 points. Intentionally letting the other players score is probably just as bad as the sixers fouling...

Very interesting!

[theLUCKYshow]

I hate when people chase stats at the end of blowouts but this was different and hard for me to comprehend so I'm going to give it a pass.

Russell said after the game he was doing it for recently murdered rapper Nipsie Hussle, and that 20 + 20 + 20 = 60. That was a reference to the Rollin 60s, an LA-based street gang connected to the Crips that Nipsie had been affiliated with in his early days. Sweet gesture, I guess? Only problem is that the murder suspect Eric Holder aka Sh*tty Cuz is a rollin 60s member.


Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

[Soleternity]

Two triple doubles in the same game? Unreal.

He’s unreal. He plays with more ferocity and energy then anyone I can think of. His athletic abilities are unparalleled.

Here’s my best comment about him that I can come up with. Good Russ is one of the greatest players of all time. Bad Russ is the most detrimental player in the league. Bad Russ has come out a lot this season. His shooting stats, which I’ll round up on, are 43%, 29%, 67%. At his level of usage he’s arguably the most damaging offensive player to his teams winning in the league. Yes, I get it, he averages a triple double. But in 2019, when people understand how efficiency works, there are legitimate debates whether Russell Westbrook is good. To be clear, I love watching him play. I am a fan of his. But I don’t think he’s a top 2 player on his team.

He’s a sure fire hall of famer who gives your team a chance to win (or lose) every game. I love watching him play.


But he’s just a conundrum. Man I hope they face and beat the dubs in round one.

Yep.

This is one of those conundrums where I think it is a great feat and insane but at the same time don’t love the optics on it.

With 1:04 left in the game and up 16, Donovan empties the bench and Diallo walks on the court to take Westbrook’s spot. Westbrook refuses. Adams misses the free throw (on purpose?) and Westbrook grabs the 20th rebound.

Yep.

Did you'll watch the game? I watched it and it was Russell hunting rebounds by not playing defense and his teammates shooting every single time Russell passed them the ball. He also attempted 23 FGs to get 20 points.

Yep.

I loved it!

That being said, it's definitely a 'shady' 20-20-20 due to the rebound hunting at the end. However, that being said again, it won't make a damn bit of difference in the record books! Hahahaha

Three straight years of averaging a triple double!?!?! INSANE

I can definitely see both sides of the Russ debate: Usage, TO's, shooting, stat hunting (which I don't believe is always the case but I do think he knows what he has), supposedly not making teammates better, hasn't won a ring (most NBA players), etc.

But if you can't see the greatness, heart, aggressiveness and hustle that he plays with on a night in, night out basis and at least acknowledge that - then that is bullsh*t and petty.

There are some very good posts in this thread that reflect all of this. Well done everyone!

Fair.

[Filthy]

What would you say the game of basketball in the NBA is about? and should be about? How great individual stats are? Winning? Showboating?

If you choose the NBA game of basketball to center around individual stats, you are right... RWB is doing the best job in the NBA to do just that.

If you choose winning, you are wrong. ..RWB is not doing the best job in the NBA.

Its a difference in opinion here. I think winning championships are more important than great individual stats. Other seem to think individual stats is the most important piece in basketball.

If I had a choice.. Id rather have 3 championship rings over 3 year of great stats and no hardware. But thats just me!!


NBA Championships are reserved for large market teams, and those who build Super Teams.

[gomiamigo]

This is one of those conundrums where I think it is a great feat and insane but at the same time don’t love the optics on it.

With 1:04 left in the game and up 16, Donovan empties the bench and Diallo walks on the court to take Westbrook’s spot. Westbrook refuses. Adams misses the free throw (on purpose?) and Westbrook grabs the 20th rebound.

Exactly.

Not quite the same as Wilt leading the NBA in assists.

[gomiamigo]

under Alex (Hannum) he wanted to win a title and become the first center to lead the league in assists. He liked to pass to Hal Greer or myself, because we just caught it and shot it..."

-Billy Cunningham

Guys who set these records don't usually just casually stumble into them. They chase records. And I'll guarantee you RWB knows the records and significant things he's done, and would act like Wilt if anybody ever broke them.

Wilt cared about winning titles and won 2 of them.

Russell will never win anything with his selfish play in OKC. Durant left because Russ was an impossible teammate.

Who cares about a 20-assist night from a PG if you can't win a playoff series with a teammate who's having a top 5 season?

[chompie99]

I loved it!

That being said, it's definitely a 'shady' 20-20-20 due to the rebound hunting at the end. However, that being said again, it won't make a damn bit of difference in the record books! Hahahaha

Three straight years of averaging a triple double!?!?! INSANE

I can definitely see both sides of the Russ debate: Usage, TO's, shooting, stat hunting (which I don't believe is always the case but I do think he knows what he has), supposedly not making teammates better, hasn't won a ring (most NBA players), etc.

But if you can't see the greatness, heart, aggressiveness and hustle that he plays with on a night in, night out basis and at least acknowledge that - then that is bullsh*t and petty.

There are some very good posts in this thread that reflect all of this. Well done everyone!

Largely agree with your sentiments. The one thing I might add is that Paul George seems to be thriving very well with Russ not having a particularly good year with his shooting. Part of me wonders if he has some injuries that have not been brought to the public eye? He hasn't seemed to me to be quite as aggressive in driving to the hoop as in years past.

Seems to me that there is going to have to be some of the peripheral players that will push the team to potential playoff success. PG and Russ by themselves go a long way, but Adams, Grant or others need to step up. Also defense has gone down some especially without Roberson this year.

Russ is awesome and his accomplishments are possibly once in a lifetime, who knows?

[ninjacookies]

He did it for the slain rapper and friend from his hometown, Nipsey Hussle who was from the Rolling 60's crip set (don't expect many on this forum to realize this, as I know the demographic probably doesn't fit).

Yes, it was completely intentional, and yes...the motives behind it were wonderful. Baron Davis (also from that community) gave a very emotional and poignant speech about WB's tribute after the game. Nipsey was a pretty huge deal, and WB's tribute was amazing.

I think some of these 'purists' are looking too far into this or just finding an excuse to throw jabs.


inb4 ewwwgangsterrap
inb4 thug
inb4 butitwasstatpadding

[BigSeph]

What would you say the game of basketball in the NBA is about? and should be about? How great individual stats are? Winning? Showboating?

If you choose the NBA game of basketball to center around individual stats, you are right... RWB is doing the best job in the NBA to do just that.

If you choose winning, you are wrong. ..RWB is not doing the best job in the NBA.

Its a difference in opinion here. I think winning championships are more important than great individual stats. Other seem to think individual stats is the most important piece in basketball.

If I had a choice.. Id rather have 3 championship rings over 3 year of great stats and no hardware. But thats just me!!

I think basically people love to throw shade at Westbrook.

After his career is over, he'll be much more appreciated.

How'd LeBron do this year? Can't do it alone. And he's supposed to be a "winner."

[BigSeph]

Wilt cared about winning titles and won 2 of them.

Russell will never win anything with his selfish play in OKC. Durant left because Russ was an impossible teammate.

Who cares about a 20-assist night from a PG if you can't win a playoff series with a teammate who's having a top 5 season?

Wilt played with 4 future HOFers on his 1967 Philly team, and 2 future HOFers on his 1972 Lakers.

Do you see Jerami Grant or Steven Adams making the basketball HOF?

[hairyangryfella]

He did it for the slain rapper and friend from his hometown, Nipsey Hussle who was from the Rolling 60's crip set (don't expect many on this forum to realize this, as I know the demographic probably doesn't fit).

Yes, it was completely intentional, and yes...the motives behind it were wonderful. Baron Davis (also from that community) gave a very emotional and poignant speech about WB's tribute after the game. Nipsey was a pretty huge deal, and WB's tribute was amazing.

I think some of these 'purists' are looking too far into this or just finding an excuse to throw jabs.


inb4 ewwwgangsterrap
inb4 thug
inb4 butitwasstatpadding

Now this sits a little off with me.

Did he do it to help his team win?
Did he do it to stop their horrendous slide in form?
No, he did it to honour some rapper...

[ninjacookies]

Now this sits a little off with me.

Did he do it to help his team win?
Did he do it to stop their horrendous slide in form?
No, he did it to honour some rapper...

He didn't do it to please you, so I'm sure he slept just fine.

[hairyangryfella]

He didn't do it to please you, so I'm sure he slept just fine.

Cool. But this is another reason people may not fawn all over him like you seem to want them to.

[ninjacookies]

Cool. But this is another reason people may not fawn all over him like you seem to want them to.

I don't want or desire anybody to fawn over anyone.

I merely point out the fallacy in their lines of reasoning 'but he's not a winner'...yeah, like 98 percent of the rest of the league.

[hairyangryfella]

I don't want or desire anybody to fawn over anyone.

I merely point out the fallacy in their lines of reasoning 'but he's not a winner'...yeah, like 98 percent of the rest of the league.

Maybe it's more a case of 'he doesn't care about winning'.
Or, how can this triple-double machine be barely scratching the playoffs when it's so instrumental in victories like some people seem to think.

[ninjacookies]

Maybe it's more a case of 'he doesn't care about winning'.
Or, how can this triple-double machine be barely scratching the playoffs when it's so instrumental in victories like some people seem to think.

I'm sure he plays the game to lose. Seems like his primary objective and why he gets so dejected and pissed in post game interviews after taking L's.

Go 130% on the floor for 48 minutes ---> get a loss ----> WIN!

Seems legit.

[hairyangryfella]

I'm sure he plays the game to lose. Seems like his primary objective and why he gets so dejected and pissed in post game interviews after taking L's.

Go 130% on the floor for 48 minutes ---> get a loss ----> WIN!

Seems legit.

You've (I have to assume intentionally) missed the point of my posts.
I'm not saying he's trying to lose. I just think he values his numbers more than winning.
And he most likely didn't care about the result of the Lakers game as long as he got his line for the rapper. Awesome to see as a fan of the team...

[jstasyk1121]

You've (I have to assume intentionally) missed the point of my posts.
I'm not saying he's trying to lose. I just think he values his numbers more than winning.
And he most likely didn't care about the result of the Lakers game as long as he got his line for the rapper. Awesome to see as a fan of the team...

i think he specifically may have tried to get 20/20/20 once it was right there in range...i dont think he set out in 1st quarter and said "i dont care what happens...im getting 20/20/20 tonight"...i think that late in the game when he had like 23/18/19 or something...yea he went for it...and i dont blame him one bit....i would have done the same damn thing....i tend to think majority of people would to be honest

but how many have ever even been in range or had a realistic shot at it? 20/20/15 is not really in range...needing 5 more assists is alot...he was right there with a handful of mins left...so we went for it...

have literally no issues with it...it is fun to see someone do something that hasnt been done in 50yrs or so...i mean think about that...of all the legends who have played the game...no one had done this in over 5 decades!!!

to hate on it and call it stat-padding or say "he cares about his stats more than the win"...in a game they WON?!?!?!? cmon..if they lost by 10 and he was chasing it to the end i could see the comments making sense...but they won the game...and it wasnt some crazy 35 pt blowout either where he was in til the end...

like it has been stated...certain people just flat dont like the guy and his style or his rebounding or his chasing triple doubles...and it will never change...but they also cannot help themselves to come into any and every thread about Russ/OKC/awards and bash him...every single time...never fails...

i happen to think this was an awesome accomplishment so i started the thread when i saw it...basically no one has ever seen this before...but nah...lets just complain that he chases stats and doesnt care about winning