There have been many people who have accused Russell Westbrook of being more concerned with his stats than winning basketball games. Since his historic MVP season, where he became NBA’s signature triple-double getter, many people have claimed that Westbrook would sacrifice a win if it meant he got a triple-double.
But looking closer at his triple-double games show that Russell Westbrook actually has a solid winning percentage in games where he scores a triple-double. As collated by Reddit user u/AyoOwl, Russell Westbrook has a record of 150 wins and 40 losses when scoring a triple-double, thus garnering a 73.7% win percentage when putting up a triple-double.
Russell Westbrook when scoring a triple-double
Wins: 150
Losses: 40
Win Percentage: 73.7%
This statistic will put to end a narrative that Westbrook’s triple-doubles don’t contribute to winning basketball. While Westbrook does consider statistics important, he hasn’t made decisions in a game that indicate that he would sacrifice a win in the name of his statistics.
Recently, Karl-Anthony Towns accused Westbrook of chasing stats in a backhanded compliment. These comments drew the ire of Draymond Green and Joel Embiid respectively, who came to the defense of Westbrook. Clearly, NBA players have respect for Westbrook’s game and his desire as a competitor.
Westbrook himself has come under fire by fans for his performances with the Los Angeles Lakers. But Russ actually seems to think that he has been playing well, and those who think otherwise are expecting too much from him. While this is debatable, a look at his recent games shows that he isn’t wrong.
Going forward, the Lakers need Russ to be better and to make better decisions. While it will be difficult to fit Russ with the rest of the team, if any player is capable of making it work, it is LeBron James. But even the King has his work cut out for him.
