A seven-foot center joins OKC's elite triple-double club, showcasing unexpected playmaking and matching Westbrook's efficiency in a dominant performance.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have kind of become synonymous with triple doubles over the past decade.
Isaiah Hartenstein joined the OKC triple double club on Tuesday night in a lopsided 128-92 win over the Orlando Magic at The Paycom Center. The Thunder starting center recorded 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in only 23 minutes of game time.
"He was awesome. Congrats to him. That’s his first career triple double," Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said in his postgame media availability. "In 22 minutes. That’s like Westbrook stuff.”
Russell Westbrook became the face of triple doubles during his incredible run from the 2017 season through the 2019 season. The Thunder fan favorite and future Hall of Famer broke the all-time career triple double mark as well as the single season triple double mark during his OKC days. Westbrook finished with a total of 138 triple doubles in his Thunder career.
Another point guard who, like Westbrook, was taken with a top pick in the draft while the Thunder were entering a rebuild and took the OKC triple double baton was Josh Giddey. The 6'8" Australian notched 11 triple doubles in only 210 career games with the franchise.
While the Thunder's triple double numbers have substantially come from point guards, it's rare to see a defensive-minded, seven foot center get in on the fun.
"Just helps the team find ways to get off better shots. He's so versatile," Isaiah Joe said of his fellow Isaiah teammate. "You see him make backdoor passes. Obviously see somebody like me runs off the screen and makes backdoor cuts, it kinda keeps the defense guessing. And he's done a really good job of being able to read all the options on the floor. Sometimes he knows when to make the pass, he knows when to make the next action. Just keeps us in motion, in rhythm. It helps us squeeze off a lot of good looks."
In total, there have now been 10 players to record a triple double in the past 18 seasons of Thunder basketball. While Westbrook was a triple double machine and Giddey was a nightly triple double threat, some of the names on the list may come as a surprise.
Oklahoma City Thunder Career Triple Doubles
Russell Westbrook: 138.
Josh Giddey: 11.
Kevin Durant: 7.
Jaylin Williams: 3.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: 2.
Serge Ibaka: 1
Paul George: 1.
Aleksej Pokusevski: 1.
Tre Mann: 1.
Isaiah Hartenstein: 1.