What is a Triple Double in Basketball?

Triple Double 

In basketball, the term “triple double” refers to a player getting 3 stats that are in the double digits, in a single game. The most common form of this is points, assists, and rebounds, but there have been players in the past that accomplished a different variation. Mark Eaton of the Utah Jazz tallied 12 points, 20 rebounds, and a whopping 14 blocks in a 1995 regular season game. Draymond Green also had an impressive performance for the Golden State Warriors, tallying 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals. He only scored 4 points that game, making Green the only player in NBA History to record a triple double with single digit points. While unlikely, quadruple doubles are also present in basketball, although it’s must harder to achieve, as only 4 players have accomplished this difficult task. The most recent was in 1994 when David Robinson tallied 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, and 10 blocks in a game against the Pistons. 

While single game triple doubles are impressive in itself, Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook have managed to average 3 stats in the double digits in a season. They are the only two players in NBA history to achieve this feat, with Robertson accomplishing it once while Westbrook did it four times. Robertson and Westbrook have the most all time triple doubles, achieving 181 and 184, respectively. Only 2 other players have reached 100 triple doubles in their career, Magic Johnson and Jason Kidd. This goes to show how impressive Westbrook and Robertson careers are. Westbrook is looking to further separate himself in this stat from Robertson and the rest of the NBA as he begins his stint with the Lakers.