Russell Westbrook Favored to Lead League in Triple-Doubles, Rockets Teammate James Harden Has +300 Odds
By Robert Duff in NBA Basketball
Updated: April 8, 2020 at 1:59 pm EDTPublished:
- Sportsbooks list Russell Westbrook of the Houston Rockets as the +180 favorite to lead the league in triple-doubles this season
- Westbrook’s Houston teammate James Harden is the second betting choice at +300
- LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers offers odds of +550
Russell Westbrook is the king of triple-doubles in the NBA. Sportsbooks don’t foresee a change of teams changing this fact of life.
The sportsbook has established Houston Rockets point guard Westbrook as the +180 chalk to lead the NBA in the stat during the 2019-20 season.
Last season with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Westbrook posted a league-leading 34 triple-doubles.
Odds to Lead NBA in Triple-Doubles
| Player (Team) | Odds |
|---|---|
| Russell Westbrook (Rockets) | +180 |
| James Harden (Rockets) | +300 |
| LeBron James (Lakers) | +550 |
| Anthony Davis (Lakers) | +1000 |
| Kawhi Leonard (Clippers) | +1800 |
| Paul George (Clippers) | +3500 |
| Field (any other player) | +300 |
*Odds taken on 10/02/19.
No other player recorded more than a dozen triple doubles last season.
Westbrook Owns the Triple Double
When it comes to triple-doubles: double-digit points, rebounds and assists in the same game – Westbrook is in a class by himself. He’s led the league in this category every season since 2014-15.
https://twitter.com/onlyonejacoby/status/1179205517882904577?s=20
And he’s put up some monster numbers while doing so.
Most NBA Triple Doubles In A Season Since 2014-15
| Player (Team) | Season | Triple-Doubles |
|---|---|---|
| Russell Westbrook (Thunder) | 2016-17 | 42* |
| Russell Westbrook (Thunder) | 2018-19 | 34* |
| Russell Westbrook (Thunder) | 2017-18 | 25* |
| James Harden (Rockets) | 2016-17 | 22 |
| LeBron James (Cavaliers) | 2017-18 | 18 |
| Russell Westbrook (Thunder) | 2015-16 | 18* |
| Draymond Green (Warriors) | 2015-16 | 13 |
| LeBron James (Cavaliers) | 2016-17 | 13 |
| Ben Simmons (Sixers) | 2017-18 | 12 |
| Nikola Jokic (Nuggets) | 2018-19 | 12 |
*Led league.
Last season, Westbrook led with 34 triple-doubles. Next in line was Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets with 12, and Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers with 10.
Simmons (12) and Jokic (10) also hit for double digits during the 2017-18 season. Along with Westbrook, they’re the only NBA players to record at least 10 triple doubles in each of the past two seasons. But Westbrook has done it five years in a row.
He’s won his five straight titles in this category by an average of 11.4 triple doubles per season.
Today’s Word Is Sharing
One of the issues most broached when Westbrook’s arrival in Houston is discussed is sharing the basketball. Houston shooting guard James Harden and Westbrook have each led the NBA in scoring. They’ve both won the NBA’s MVP Award. Most of all, both Westbrook and Harden like the ball in their hands.
Russell Westbrook has a message for the league 😳 pic.twitter.com/hnHBUQVb4p
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 27, 2019
Harden posted the second-highest usage rate (40.5) in NBA history last season. That number trailed only the 41.7 Westbrook put up during his 2016-17 MVP season.
Good morning. James Harden and Russell Westbrook are Houston Rockets https://t.co/vZ8F6N43rh
— LebronJamesHarden™️ (@LBJamesHarden) October 1, 2019
Critics argue that Westbrook will need to learn how to impact that game without scoring the basketball. The fact that he posted a triple double in 46.57 percent of his games last season (34 of 73) would appear to indicate that he is already doing just that.
Dwyane Wade and LeBron James figured out how to co-exist and win together in Miami. Harden and Westbrook, who already have a history together in Oklahoma City, should be able to do the same.
Anyone Else Worth Looking at?
Although Simmons and Jokic hit for double digits each of the past two seasons, they were still miles behind Westbrook’s output.
Likewise, LeBron was in double digits in triple-doubles in two of the past three campaigns but wasn’t in Westbrook’s class.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4mnQNVTx54
If you’re looking to get a price away from Westbrook, take a chance on playing the field. You’ll get both Simmons and Jokic with this wager, as well as Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, who posted eight triple doubles as a rookie last season.
You’ll also get every Eastern Conference player, since all of those sportsbooks offering odds on perform in the West.
It’s Westbrook’s to Win
Paired with Harden, Westbrook’s triple double numbers figure to decline a bit. At the same time, look for Harden to get more triple doubles than the seven he posted last season.
3rd assist of the night. Russell Westbrook is now assured of averaging a triple-double for the 3rd straight season. First time that’s happened in NBA #hist0ry. #WhyNot? pic.twitter.com/S6BgEeB3Bf
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) April 6, 2019
Westbrook finished last season with per game averages of 23.0 points, 11.1 rebounds and 10.5 assists.
That’s right – he averaged a triple double. And he did so for the third season in a row, an NBA first.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDeasroZQFY
On April 20th last season against the Los Angeles Lakers, Westbrook finished with 20 points, 21 assists and 20 rebounds. He joined Hall-of-Famer Wilt Chamberlain as the only players in NBA history to post a 20-20-20 line.
Pick: Russell Westbrook (+180).
Sports Writer
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
