Whenever people talk about sports, Basketball must have a place to be part of the talking topic. Basketball is one of the most renowned sports in the world. It has a rich history and an extraordinary style of playing. If you’ve been watching NBA Basketball during the last couple of years, you must have heard the most familiar term ‘Triple double’ around a lot. Here we are going to explore the term What is a Triple-double and how it works in Basketball
What is Triple-double in Basketball? How does it work?
The answer is quite simple if you know about Basketball. If not, It is still easy to understand. So let’s have a look- There are five main individual stats in Basketball, such as Points, Assists, Rebounds, Steals and Blocks. These are used to measure a player’s performance in a single Basketball game. So when a player achieves double digits in three of these stats, called a Triple-double.
What Is a Double-Double?
Before known to Triple-doubles, you should be known what is Double-Double? The double-double refers to a single-game performance in which a basketball player scores ten or more of at least two of the following statistical categories: points, rebounds, steals, assists, and blocked shots. The first “double” refers to there being two categories in which this achievement has been reached, and the second “double” refers to double-digits or double figures—ten or more points, rebounds, steals, etc.
To Understand deeply, You have to know how these five statistical categories work.
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Points are measures of the number of goals by a player in a game. Most shots in Basketball carry two points but players can make three point shots, one point from free throws.
The Basket net of a Basketball game.
Rebounds is a statistical term when a basketball player retrieves the basketball after a missed shot. Assists occur when a player makes a pass to another player that leads to a basket.
Another statistical term is Steals, which means when one player takes the ball away from another. The last of the list is Blocks when one player blocks another player’s shot with their hand.
Luka Dončić becomes first player in NBA history to have six straight 30-point triple-doubles. Image- CNN
These statistics categories are the best way to identify how well a player is performing. So triple-double is attained when a player has double-digit stats in any three of these five major statistical categories. For more clearing, Example, 10 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds.
Another two categories are Blocks and Steals. These are difficult to achieve in a game, most commonly a triple-double containing Points, assists, and rebounds. In the same way, Double-double occurs when a player achieves double digits in two of these statistical categories.
Who had the most triple-doubles in 2023-24?
The most versatile and skilled players usually regularly make triple-doubles. The most Triple-doubles in 2023-24 goes to Domantas Sabonis, with an insane 22. The next player on the list is Nikola Jokic who is a little away from Domantas Sabonis. He achieved 20 triple-doubles in the 2023-24 season. Luka Doncic ranked third on the list with 15 Triple-doubles.
All three of these players consistently ranked high on their teams with their versatile playing styles.
11 Players With Record Triple-Doubles
During the 1979–80 NBA season, the triple-double became an official statistical category. Today, double-doubles and double-triples are recorded at many different levels: high school, college, and professional leagues. Some of the most famous holders of this distinction are at the professional level:
1. Andy Phillip: Andy Phillip of the Philadelphia Warriors was the NBA player to record the first triple-double, in a 1950 NBA game against the Fort Wayne Pistons.
2. Russell Westbrook: Westbrook, point guard for the Washington Wizards, formerly of the Oklahoma City Thunder, holds the highest number of career triple-doubles during the regular season, at one hundred and eighty-seven. As the current triple-double leader, Westbrook is also known as one of only two players to average a triple-double over a single season; the other is Oscar Robertson (“The Big O”) of the Cincinnati Royals.
3. Magic Johnson: Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers holds the record for the highest number of triple-doubles in the postseason with thirty.
4. James Harden: James Harden of the Houston Rockets is first in the standings for most points scored in a triple-double, with sixty points. He made ten rebounds and eleven assists to complete that triple-double in 2018.
5. LeBron James: LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers currently has a record of ninety-nine triple-doubles in regular season, and twenty-eight in the playoffs.
6. Luka Dončić: Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks is another active player who has been racking up triple-doubles. He currently holds the triple-double record for the fewest minutes in 30-point triple-double, scoring thirty-five points, ten rebounds, and ten assists while playing for twenty-five minutes and thirty seconds.
7. Larry Kenon: Former players Larry Kenon (San Antonio Spurs) and Kendall Gill (New Jersey Nets) share the record for most steals in a triple-double, with eleven.
8. Kendall Gill: Kendall Gill of the New Jersey Nets is tied with Larry Kenon for the most steals in a triple double.
9. Wilt Chamberlain: Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, LA Lakers) holds the record for career double-doubles at nine hundred and sixty-eight, is number six on the regular season record board for triple-doubles, and number eight in the postseason rankings for triple-doubles.
10. Dwyane Wade: Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat) is one of the only players in NBA history to have achieved a triple-double in their final career game; he logged a triple-double against the Brooklyn Nets in 2019.
11. Nikola Jokic: Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets) has the record for the fastest triple-double, logging the feat fourteen minutes and thirty-three seconds into a 2018 game against the Milwaukee Bucks. Source: masterclass.com
Who Has the Most Career Triple-Doubles?
In the National Basketball Association (NBA), Oscar Robertson holds the most career triple-doubles, with 181. Hence, He is known as ‘Mr Triple-doubles’ in the history of Basketball.
Oscar Robertson holds the most career triple-doubles, Image- Instagram
In the 1961/62 NBA season, He became the first player in history to average a triple-double with an insane 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 11.4 assists in every single game. The undisputed king retired from Basketball in 1974.
Although Triple-doubles are common in the NBA, the other side is extremely different. In the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), Triple-doubles are rare and less common than NBA.
Tamika Catchings, Played for Indiana Fever from 2002 to 2016, is the first player in Basketball history who holds the record of achieving a quintuple-double. This means Tamika Catchings attained double digits in all five statistical categories.
Finally, What is Triple-doubles in Basketball?, the answer is clear above and maybe there is no way of confusing it.
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