Even at 36 years old, Denver Nuggets star point guard Russell Westbrook can still put up gaudy numbers across the board. That was the case for him again Monday night against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center in Francisco. Westbrook took advantage of a heavy usage on his plate amid the absences of guard Jamal Murray and center Nikola Jokic.
Without Denver’s top two players, Westbrook enjoyed having the leather in his hands most of the time, as he helped the Nuggets eke out a 114-105 victory by stuffing the stat sheets with 12 points, 16 assists, 11 rebounds, three steals and two blocks. If that stat line sounds like no one has achieved that before, it’s because that’s true.
Westbrook is the “first player in NBA history with those numbers in a single game,” according to StatMuse.
Westbrook also accomplished yet another triple-double, which means he now has 203 trip-dubs in his career, the most by any player in the history of the NBA. His triple-double production has greatly slowed down over the last several years.
After collecting 38 triple-doubles with the Washington Wizards in the 2020-21 NBA season, Westbrook has authored only 19 trip-dubs since. His triple-double against the Warriors was his fourth of the season, thus far.
Nuggets outlast the Warriors minus Jokic, Murray
The former NBA Most Valuable Player mainly teamed up with Aaron Gordon to take care of business against the Warriors, whose win streak ended in seven games following the loss to the Nuggets.
Gordon muscled his way through for 38 points while shooting 14-for-23 from the field and adding six boards and three assists in 37 minutes. Also worth mentioning was Michael Porter Jr.’s performance, as he had 21 points and 10 boards plus five assists.
Gordon and Westbrook combined for 14 of Denver’s 20 turnovers against the Warriors but the Nuggets ultimately survived all those errors and miscues, as Denver also partly made up for those miscues by winning the possession battle overall. They outshot the Warriors from the field, 92-84 and outrebounded the Dubs, 53-38.
Denver will take a rest this Tuesday before getting back on the court on Wednesday to face the Los Angeles Lakers in the second game of the Nuggets’ four-leg road trip.
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