Inside The Nuggets

Russell Westbrook Makes NBA History vs. Brooklyn Nets

Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook made NBA history against the Nets.
Joey Linn|
Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook (4) against the Phoenix Suns at Ball Arena.
Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook (4) against the Phoenix Suns at Ball Arena. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

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Denver NuggetsBrooklyn Nets

The Denver Nuggets picked up their second win of the NBA season on Tuesday night, defeating the Brooklyn Nets in overtime. Denver trailed by as many as 17 points in this game, but completed the comeback to defeat Brooklyn 144-139.

Veteran point guard Russell Westbrook had his best performance of the season in this game, scoring 22 points and dishing out five assists in just 21 minutes of play. The nine-time NBA All-Star made all 10 of his free throw attempts and both of his three-point attempts.

Via Basketball Reference’s StatHead, this was Westbrook’s 739th career game with at least 20 points (including playoffs), which ties NBA legend Charles Barkley for 27th all-time. 

This is just one way Westbrook made NBA history in this game, as he also moved into a tie for the 25th most games with at least 20 points and five assists off the bench (via StatHead). 

Westbrook is climbing this list despite having just 127 career games off the bench. For reference, Westbrook’s 16 career games of at least 20 points and five assists off the bench are tied with NBA legend Dan Majerle who made 501 career appearances as a reserve. 

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone gave Westbrook the Defensive Player of the Game chain after this win.

In his 17th NBA season, Westbrook showed on Tuesday he is still capable of making a strong impact with his scoring, playmaking, and defense.

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Joey Linn
JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA and WNBA for On SI. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined On SI to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts and in the classroom earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time, primarily serving as a Clippers beat writer.

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