The Triple-Double Timeline
The concept of the triple-double began in the 1979-1980 season despite Oscar Robertson averaging one in 1961. When box scores were reviewed and backtracked for seasons prior to 1979, it was found that the first completed triple-double in league history occurred way back in 1950. It was done by Andy Phillip of the Philadelphia Warriors, who had 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
Since Phillip’s inaugural triple-double there have been over 1,000 other box-scores that showcase a triple double. Of those triple doubles, the most common occurrence is the trio of points, rebounds, and assists. The two far less frequent triple doubles were the games that included 10+ blocks and games that included 10+ steals (a very rare 6 times).
What had never been showcased, however, was a triple-double that did not include 10+ points. That is until Draymond Green completed this seemingly unattainable feat on February 10th, 2017.
4 Points, 11 Rebounds, 10 Assists, 10 Steals
Draymond Green has always done all the small things for his team that never showed up on the stat sheet. Even still, he had stacked the stat sheet occasionally and recorded 19 triple-doubles before his historic game against the Grizzlies. On a night in which Klay Thompson dropped 36 points, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry combined for 42 points, and Iguodala added 22 points off the bench, there simply was not enough points to go around for Green.
Draymond Green attempted just six shots, making two of them. Instead he focused on every other aspect of the game and did all the dirty work. He finished with 4 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists, 10 steals, and 5 blocks.
Warriors coach, Steve Kerr, stated after the game that Green’s performance was “as dominant of a performance as I’ve ever seen from somebody who scored 4 points.”
Draymond Green not only recorded the 10 steals for his triple-double but also added 5 blocks, which headlined a Golden State defense that held Memphis to 39% shooting and forced 19 turnovers. Green spent time guarding all three of the Grizzlies stars, switching from Marc Gasol to Zach Randolph to Mike Conley throughout the entirety of the game. Most notably, Draymond made life extremely difficult for Gasol, causing him to shoot 4/14 in the game.
Nearly five years have passed since this game and Green is still the lone player to ever have a triple-double with fewer than 10 points.