Two streaks that the NBA is watching closely doesn't involve the actual teams, but individual players, and two of the best the league has to offer today. One broke an NBA record on Monday night, and that one is Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Westbrook recorded his 10th consecutive triple-double in the Oklahoma City Thunder's 120-111 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday. The streak is the longest such streak in NBA history, as Westbrook finished with 21 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists in the home win. Paul George led all scorers for OKC with 47 points, as the Thunder improved the Western Conference's third-best record to 37-19.
Westbrook's streak breaks Wilt Chamerlain's 1968 record of nine straight triple-doubles, and it just adds to the point guard's career feats already. He is already the only player to average a triple-double in consecutive seasons, and set a single-season triple-double record with 42 of them in the 2016-2017 campaign. His assist to George on a three-pointer in the fourth quarter sealed the record, and gave Westbrook 23 triple-doubles on the season and 127 in his career. The Thunder are 9-1 during their All-Star's record run.
Meanwhile, another streak that has not quite made NBA history yet continued on Monday night, and that is James Harden's 30-point streak. Harden connected on a three-pointer late in the fourth quarter of the Houston Rockets' 120-104 win over the Dallas Mavericks to extend his 30-point streak to 30 games. That is the third-longest such streak in NBA history, with Chamberlain holding the top two streaks of 31 and 65 straight games. Harden finished with 31 points at the Toyota Center on Monday, and he reached that feat despite dealing with a shoulder injury.
Chris Paul assisted Harden on that late three, and said after the game that he wasn't doing it just to extend his streak, although gave plenty of credit to his teammate for this recent run. Head coach Mike D'Antoni admitted that Harden's shoulder ailment was slowing him down, as he was held to just 20 points with less than three minutes to play in the game. He went on to make consecutive three-pointers during a crucial 9-3 run to keep Dallas from a comeback attempt, and then after a driving layup, extended the streak with the late three. He will have a chance to tie for the second-longest streak on Wednesday night when the Rockets visit the Minnesota Timbrewolves.
Westbrook's streak breaks Wilt Chamerlain's 1968 record of nine straight triple-doubles, and it just adds to the point guard's career feats already. He is already the only player to average a triple-double in consecutive seasons, and set a single-season triple-double record with 42 of them in the 2016-2017 campaign. His assist to George on a three-pointer in the fourth quarter sealed the record, and gave Westbrook 23 triple-doubles on the season and 127 in his career. The Thunder are 9-1 during their All-Star's record run.
Meanwhile, another streak that has not quite made NBA history yet continued on Monday night, and that is James Harden's 30-point streak. Harden connected on a three-pointer late in the fourth quarter of the Houston Rockets' 120-104 win over the Dallas Mavericks to extend his 30-point streak to 30 games. That is the third-longest such streak in NBA history, with Chamberlain holding the top two streaks of 31 and 65 straight games. Harden finished with 31 points at the Toyota Center on Monday, and he reached that feat despite dealing with a shoulder injury.
Chris Paul assisted Harden on that late three, and said after the game that he wasn't doing it just to extend his streak, although gave plenty of credit to his teammate for this recent run. Head coach Mike D'Antoni admitted that Harden's shoulder ailment was slowing him down, as he was held to just 20 points with less than three minutes to play in the game. He went on to make consecutive three-pointers during a crucial 9-3 run to keep Dallas from a comeback attempt, and then after a driving layup, extended the streak with the late three. He will have a chance to tie for the second-longest streak on Wednesday night when the Rockets visit the Minnesota Timbrewolves.
