{"id":664382,"date":"2026-03-18T06:11:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T06:11:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/664382\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T06:11:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T06:11:19","slug":"nba-announces-historic-russell-westbrook-development-during-spurs-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/664382\/","title":{"rendered":"NBA Announces Historic Russell Westbrook Development During Spurs Game"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/tag\/russell-westbrook\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Russell Westbrook;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Russell Westbrook<\/a> is in the middle of his 18th season in the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:NBA;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">NBA<\/a>, plying his trade with the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/sacramento-kings\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Sacramento Kings;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Sacramento Kings<\/a> this year. While it&#8217;s been a terrible year for the Kings, Westbrook has emerged as a locker room leader and influential figure on the court.<\/p>\n<p>Westbrook is averaging 5.4 points, 6.6 assists, and 5.5 rebounds in 62 games this season, showing he still has a lot to offer NBA teams who might be interested in a veteran like him. He&#8217;s passionately defended his teammates from media criticism, and he&#8217;s been a consummate professional. He&#8217;s also made NBA history this season with the Kings.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/nbapr\/status\/2033973053873418437?s=46\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:NBA announced;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">NBA announced<\/a> that Westbrook has officially crossed legendary point guards Mark Jackson (10,334) and Steve Nash (10,335) on the all-time assists list with his first three dimes of their game against the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/san-antonio-spurs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:San Antonio Spurs;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">San Antonio Spurs<\/a> tonight.<\/p>\n<p>Westbrook has gone from seventh to entering the top five in all-time assists with a total of 10,335, as of his third assist tonight.<\/p>\n<p>Westbrook <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/leaders\/ast_career.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:still trails;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">still trails<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/los-angeles-lakers\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Los Angeles Lakers;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> forward <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/tag\/lebron-james\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:LeBron James;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">LeBron James<\/a> (11,909), <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/dallas-mavericks\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Dallas Mavericks;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Dallas Mavericks<\/a> head coach Jason Kidd (12,091), the recently retired <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/tag\/chris-paul\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Chris Paul;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Chris Paul<\/a> (12,552), and the all-time leader John Stockton (15,806).<\/p>\n<p>The all-time triple-double leader is cementing his legacy as one of the greatest point guards the NBA has ever seen. Even with the criticism that&#8217;s followed him to multiple spots in his career, there&#8217;s no denying that the former MVP is one of the best and most influential players of the modern era.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Kings guard Russell Westbrook holds the NBA record for most triple-doubles. Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1198\" height=\"800\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"standard-img w-full w-full h-auto\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/030bb9c26cfc7bea9501787a4c0a5c9e.jpeg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Kings guard Russell Westbrook holds the NBA record for most triple-doubles. Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p> (Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n<p>Westbrook has had a long career of racking up these assists, starting with 6,897 over an 11-year tenure with the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/oklahoma-city-thunder\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:OKC Thunder;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">OKC Thunder<\/a>. His one-season stint with the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/houston-rockets\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Houston Rockets;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Houston Rockets<\/a> added 401 to his career total before his time with the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/washington-wizards\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Washington Wizards;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Washington Wizards<\/a> added 763 more.<\/p>\n<p>His next three seasons were split between 1.5 and 1.5 on the Lakers (941) and Clippers (466). His season with the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/denver-nuggets\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Denver Nuggets;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Denver Nuggets<\/a> last year added 457 to his career total, while he&#8217;s dished out 408 assists so far this season with the Kings.<\/p>\n<p>Westbrook will continue building on these numbers and try to climb higher before his career is over. Given the pace at which he&#8217;s continued racking up assists, he might need at least three more seasons before he can surpass Kidd. It&#8217;s hard to say if he can surpass LeBron since he&#8217;s still active, but Paul and Stockton&#8217;s totals look decidedly out of reach.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/los-angeles-lakers\/marcus-smart-claims-nba-team-forced-him-play-through-injury-before-lakers-stint\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Related: Marcus Smart Claims NBA Team Forced Him To Play Through Injury Before Lakers Stint;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Related: Marcus Smart Claims NBA Team Forced Him To Play Through Injury Before Lakers Stint<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This story was originally published by <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\/sacramento-kings\/nba-announces-historic-russell-westbrook-development-during-spurs-game\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Athlon Sports;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Athlon Sports<\/a> on Mar 18, 2026, where it first appeared in the <a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nba\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:NBA;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">NBA<\/a> section. Add Athlon Sports as a <a href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=athlonsports.com\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Preferred Source by clicking here.;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\">Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Russell Westbrook is in the middle of his 18th season in the NBA, plying his trade with the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":664383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3797],"tags":[7,2596,559,149,187,194,3716,7011,185,150,8173,6,878,16702,254,477,969,474,4075,4074,534,2543,468],"class_list":["post-664382","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-antonio-spurs","tag-basketball","tag-chris-paul","tag-clippers","tag-dallas-mavericks","tag-denver-nuggets","tag-houston-rockets","tag-jason-kidd","tag-john-stockton","tag-lebron-james","tag-los-angeles-lakers","tag-mark-jackson","tag-nba","tag-okc-thunder","tag-point-guards","tag-russell-westbrook","tag-sacramento-kings","tag-san-antonio","tag-san-antonio-spurs","tag-sanantonio","tag-sanantoniospurs","tag-spurs","tag-steve-nash","tag-washington-wizards"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116248700556116215","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=664382"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664382\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/664383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=664382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=664382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=664382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}