The legend of King James continues to grow with each game he plays.
On Tuesday night, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar claimed a new record for himself with his performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
LeBron James tallied another triple-double and while he’s not the all-time leader in that particular category, he achieved a special record before any other player in league history.
LeBron’s triple-double vs. OKC brings new record
The Lakers hosted Chris Paul and the Thunder in Tuesday night’s game, a Western Conference team with a losing record. However, they were also the only team LeBron had yet to achieve a triple-double against during his All-Star career. He can now check that off his list of accomplishments.
In a 112-107 win, LeBron finished with 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists. That stat line is historic as it means LeBron James has now achieved a triple-double against all 30 NBA teams. He’s the only NBA player to achieve the feat so far, per ESPN’s report.
When asked about his record after the game, LeBron admitted to the media he “had no idea” he’d made history.
“Coach [Frank] Vogel came in here and said congratulations,” LeBron said. “I was like, I thought he was joking about my seven turnovers because I’ve been taking care of the ball so much. He said first player in NBA history to have a triple-double versus 30 teams, every team, so I was like, ‘OK. That’s pretty cool.'”
? LeBron James reflects on a historic night, becoming the first player to record a triple-double against every team in the NBA. pic.twitter.com/GosC3oip7x
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) November 20, 2019
LeBron’s all-time triple-doubles
The historic triple-double was LeBron James’ fifth this season in just 14 games so far. However, LeBron still has quite a climb to claim the all-time record for triple-doubles.
His 86 total triple-doubles ranks him at No. 5 on the all-time list, trailing four All-Star greats, one of whom is active. At the top of the list is Oscar Robertson with 181 triple-doubles. He’s followed by current Houston Rockets star Russell Westbrook (141). Magic Johnson (138) and Jason Kidd (107) are third and fourth, respectively.
Kidd, who is currently a Lakers assistant coach, had triple-doubles versus 28 NBA teams during his career.
Of note, Westbrook nearly achieved the historic mark before LeBron did. He currently has triple-doubles versus 29 teams. Fittingly, the last team on his list is his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder.
.@KingJames is the only player to put up a triple-double against all 30 NBA teams ? (via @EliasSports)
? LeBron James – 30 teams
? Russell Westbrook – 29 teams
? Jason Kidd – 28 teams pic.twitter.com/glGsrpBHul— ESPN (@espn) November 20, 2019
That said, LeBron is less concerned with achieving the individual records right now and more concerned with keeping the Lakers’ record going strong.
“Hopefully, you know, throughout all those triple-doubles, I hope I got a winning record in those games because that’s what’s most important,” LeBron said post-game.
After Tuesday night’s win, the team is 12-2 for their season and continues to hold their lead on the Western Conference by one game over Houston.
