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“Russell Westbrook had a 50-point triple double, broke Oscar Robertson’s record, and hit the game winner in the same game?!”: When the 2017 NBA MVP went GOD mode against the Denver Nuggets

Raahib Singh
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"Russell Westbrook had a 50-point triple double, broke Oscar Robertson's record, and hit the game winner in the same game?!": When the 2017 NBA MVP went GOD mode against the Denver Nuggets

Russell Westbrook went insane against the Denver Nuggets for his 42nd triple-double of the season, hit the game-winner to seal the deal

The day is April 9 in the year 2017. The Oklahoma City Thunder are visiting the Denver Nuggets for their 3rd contest of the season. A crucial matchup for the Nuggets, they need to secure this win to keep their chances of staying in the race for the playoffs.

However, there was a force on the court that did not agree with the same. The name of the force was none other than Russell Westbrook. Having an MVP caliber season, Russell Westbrook led the Thunder to the 6th seed in the West, in the first season without Kevin Durant.

Also Read: “Russell Westbrook and Wilt Chamberlain had those numbers too!”: NBA Twitter reacts to Nikola Jokic leading the 2021-22 season MVP charts in the latest edition of power rankings

Entering the game, Russ had 41 triple-doubles to his name, tied with Oscar Robertson for the most in a regular season. Russ had barely missed getting triple-doubles in the last two contests and was on the lookout for #42. Unfortunately for the Nuggets, Brodie brought out his A-Game.

How Russell Westbrook got 4 birds with the same stone against the Nuggets

Back in the 2016-17 season, Russell Westbrook was showing the NBA how good of a player he was, and finding ways to win without KD. Westbrook ended up averaging a triple-double for the season and putting up an MVP caliber season to do the same.

In the game against the Nuggets, the Thunder were struggling on the floor. They couldn’t get their shots to land, and it seemed like the Nuggets would be able to sneak in a win. However, that is when Russell Westbrook went beast mode, dropping a monster 50 point, 16 rebound, and 10 assist performance. He hit the game-winning shot from near mid-court to put the Thunder up 106-105.

In this one game, Russ not recorded a 50-point triple-double but also broke Oscar Robertson’s single-game triple-double record. Russ also hit the game-winner and eliminated the Nuggets from the playoffs in one go.

Also Read: “It’s time for Russell Westbrook to start playing overseas”: The former MVP divides NBA Twitter over his recent statistic

2016-17 Westbrook was a whole different beast.

About the author

Raahib Singh

Raahib Singh

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Raahib Singh is an NBA Journalist and Content Strategist at The SportsRush. A Computer Science Engineer by qualification, Raahib's passion for sports drew him towards TSR. He started playing basketball at 14 and has been following the NBA since 2013. His entry into the basketball world perfectly coincided with Stephen Curry putting the league on notice. Having followed the league for a long time, he decided to use his knowledge to become a sportswriter with The SportsRush in 2020. Raahib loves to put up some shots in his spare time, watch Cricket, Formula 1, and/or read a nice thriller.

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