Washington Wizards talisman Russell Westbrook is probably one of the most ridiculed and criticised stars in the NBA currently. He keeps on dropping solid performances but still gets called out on social media every other day. He is mainly scrutinized for his lack of success in the NBA.
Westbrook may not get the respect that he deserves but NBA Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson acknowledges the point guard’s game as he recently broke the norm of criticising him. Roberton recently came on a podcast with Peter Vecsey where he was asked about the Wizards talisman and on him breaking Robertson’s triple double record.
“I think he will (pass me),” Robertson said. “I’ll be glad when he does, because he’s a tremendous basketball player and athlete. I think it’s really something that sports writers are getting on him, saying he didn’t do this, he didn’t win a championship. All the kid is doing is playing MVP basketball every night.”
The Big O is the true triple-double king in the NBA and now the modern generation has seen someone like Russell Westbrook who is also known for his triple-doubles. Robertson ended his career with a mammoth 181 triple-doubles and now the Wizards star is only five away from reaching the milestone. Considering Westbrook is only 32 right now it is given that he will overtake the Hall of Famer but still Robertson is happy for him.
The Wizards recently had a blowout win against the Cleveland Cavaliers by 122-93 where Westbrook ended the game with 15 points, 11 assists and 12 rebounds. However, they lost their next game on the following day in a tight encounter against the Dallas Mavericks by 125-124 where again he dropped a mammoth 42 points along with 10 rebounds and nine assists.
After the win against the Cavaliers, Westbrook was asked his opinion on Robertson’s comments, to which he said, “It’s truly an honour, man. It’s something that honestly I don’t take for granted.”
Achieving a triple-double in the NBA nowadays is a big feat and doing it as often as Westbrook does should be more appreciated. Rather he is often called names like ‘ball hog’ and ‘stats padder’ for accumulating triple-doubles in successive matches. All in all just like Robertson more people should come out and praise the Wizards star for his achievements rather than criticising him.
After a tough start this season, the Wizards have made a great comeback and it is all due to Westbrook and Bradley Beal’s partnership and understanding. Now the Wizards are in 10th position and will look to compete in the play-ins to get through to the playoffs this season.
