Rockets guard Russell Westbrook quickly made history with a rebound in the opening seconds of Friday’s game in Houston versus Philadelphia.
The rebound made Westbrook just the fifth player in NBA history and only the second active player with at least 7,000 career assists and 6,000 rebounds. With the achievement, Westbrook joins LeBron James, Jason Kidd, Oscar Robertson, and Magic Johnson on the all-time list.
Now 31 years old and in his 12th NBA season, Westbrook’s rebounding total is the most ever by any player listed at 6-foot-3 or smaller.
It’s yet another milestone in an eventual Hall of Fame career for Westbrook, who won the league’s 2017 MVP award and has made the All-Star Game eight times.
Entering Friday, Westbrook has played especially well over the past four weeks with the Rockets — with averages of 28.5 points (46.9% shooting), 7.8 rebounds, and 6.8 assists in 37.2 minutes per game. He’s also made 90.1% of his free throws in that period.
Prior to the 11-game hot stretch, Westbrook averaged 21.7 points on 39.9% shooting and 73.7% from the foul line over his first 19 games in Houston. The improvement would seem to suggest that Westbrook is settling in alongside his new teammates after recently changing teams for the first time in his 12-year career.
For the team as a whole, after swapping out Chris Paul for Westbrook in the offseason, the Rockets (23-11) have improved from No. 28 in the NBA in team rebounding a year ago to No. 5 this season.
