While this season has been a mess for the Sacramento Kings, Russell Westbrook in Year 18 has continued to play hard and help be a leader for the young players alongside him. In the process of doing so, Westbrook has also continued to add to his own legacy, and that's what he did on Tuesday night against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
Westbrook, the NBA's all-time leader in triple-doubles, has added yet another monumental feat to his list of achievements, as he passed Mark Jackson (10,334) and Steve Nash (10,335) to move into sole possession of fifth on the league's all-time assists leaderboard with 10,336 career assists and counting.
That puts Westbrook inside the top five all-time in assists with LeBron James (11,090), Jason Kidd (12,091), Chris Paul (12,552), and John Stockton (15,806).
Westbrook recently became the first guard in NBA history to surpass 9,000 career rebounds.
Despite bouncing around to a handful of teams in the later stages of his career, Westbrook continues to play at a high level, and the 37-year-old guard is proving that retirement isn't on his mind just yet.
Although the Kings are one of the worst teams in the NBA at 18-51 entering Tuesday night's game, Westbrook has put together arguably his best season over the last three years.
In 62 games this season, not including the Kings' game against the Spurs, Westbrook has averaged 15.4 points, 6.6 assists, and 5.5 rebounds per game while shooting 42.8 percent from the floor. His six triple-doubles this year rank fifth among all players, and two of them have come in his last three games.
Coincidentally, the Kings have played well with Westbrook regaining his triple-double-like identity, as they have won four of their last five games entering Tuesday night's game in Sacramento.
Records and accolades speak for themselves, and Westbrook has quite a few that prove he is a sure-thing Hall of Famer. This is just his latest accomplishment that adds a whole new layer to his greatness as one of the best passers in NBA history.
