Mark D. Smith/USA TODAY Sports
Russell Westbrook needed 79 games and 22 minutes to achieve something no one had ever done in the NBA.
In the 22nd minute of his season’s final regular season game, Westbrook grabbed his 16th rebound of the night to become the first player in NBA history to average a triple double for the second straight year.
Although snagging 16 rebounds on a night may seem far for most NBA big men, the star guard already had eight rebounds within the first 11 minutes and one point, 8 rebounds, 11 rebounds and 12 assists by halftime.
With history within in sight, Westbrook went after it.
Within the first three minutes of the second half, Westbrook came down with an additional five rebounds and cemented his place in history. For the night, he finished with six points, 20 rebounds and 19 assists in the win over Memphis.
On the season, Westbrook averaged 25.4 points, 10.1 rebounds and 10.3 assists per game.
With the regular season over, Westbrook and the 3rd seeded OKC Thunder will next take on the Utah Jazz on Sunday in the opening round of the NBA playoffs.
