LeBron James once doubted whether any player could average a triple-double in the modern NBA: “It’s going to be really tough”

Before LeBron James ever played an NBA game, he was already being treated like a generational prospect. But even with all the hype around “The Chosen One,” few could have imagined he would become one of the most complete players basketball has ever seen.

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It didn’t take long for King James to become a triple-double machine in an era dominated by isolation scorers. He has admitted multiple times that he adopted that point-forward playstyle by watching former league icons like Penny Hardaway. Still, it must be said that James elevated the archetype to unprecedented heights.

Many believed back then that if anyone were to repeat Oscar Robertson‘s feat of averaging a triple-double across a full season, it would be LeBron. However, he tried to temper the hype, claiming that such a task was extremely difficult.

“It’s tough… I think Oscar (Robertson) was unbelievable… It’s going to be really tough,” James told “Inside Hoops” back in 2008.

James likely could have done it over a regular season as well

The four-time champ has proven throughout his career that he truly can do it all. In 2006, he led the league in scoring with an average of 31.4 points, only to lead the league in assists 14 years later with 10.6 per game, becoming just the seventh player in league history to accomplish that feat.

The closest he ever came to averaging a triple-double over a full season was in 2017-18, when he averaged 27.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 9.1 assists in a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform, suggesting he came very close, but realistically still remained quite far from the achievement.

His iconic NBA Finals performances tell an even bigger story, as a year prior, during a grueling five-game series against the Golden State Warriors, he averaged an absurd 33.6 points, 12.0 rebounds, and 10.0 assists, becoming the first player in NBA Finals history to average a triple-double.

Had he wanted to, James likely could have done it over a regular season as well, but over the years he learned to pace himself and save his best for the playoffs. During the 2018 postseason, across 22 games, he averaged 34.0 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 9.0 assists. Also, with 28 playoff triple-doubles, he ranks second on the all-time playoff list only behind Magic Johnson, while his 11 triple-doubles in the NBA Finals rank first all-time.

His career averages stand at 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 7.4 assists, while he sits fifth on the all-time regular season list with 125 triple-doubles, even though it once seemed he would easily surpass Robertson at the top.

All these numbers strongly suggest that the four-time NBA champion is very likely the greatest all-around player of all time. Still, the honor of averaging a triple-double for a season went to Russell Westbrook and Nikola Jokic.

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Westbrook managed the feat an incredible four times, most impressively in his 2017 MVP campaign when he averaged 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 10.4 assists. He even averaged a triple-double across two separate postseason runs.

On the other hand, Jokic redefined the boundaries of what is possible from the center position. Over the past two seasons, he averaged a triple-double back-to-back, becoming the first player in league history to lead the league in both rebounds and assists in the same season while averaging 27.7 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 10.7 assists. However, he has never averaged a triple-double in the playoffs.

Nikola Jokić has recorded a triple-double in 24.2% of his games (regular season and playoffs). That is the highest career percentage in @NBA history.

The only player in league history with a higher rate at any point in his career was Oscar Robertson (at any point during his… pic.twitter.com/JfulbX6422

— Crazy Stats (@NBAcrazystats) August 19, 2026

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Big O remains the blueprint

Westbrook currently leads the all-time regular-season list with 209 triple-doubles, but not for long, as Jokic sits right behind him at 198 with several great seasons ahead of him and Robertson is now third with 181.

As for the playoffs, Jokic ranks third with 23, Westbrook fourth with 12, while Robertson is 11th with eight, according to Basketball Reference data. In the NBA Finals, Westbrook and Robertson never logged a triple-double, while Jokic is tied for fourth with two.

Still, the game today is very different from when Robertson did it, in an era when it bordered on the impossible. His sophomore 1961-62 season, averaging 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 11.4 assists, will forever stand as a testament to his brilliance and greatness.

Even as modern stars surpass his records, Big O remains the blueprint. He was a man ahead of his time who paved the way for James, Westbrook, Jokic and many other greats of the game.

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This story was originally published September 19, 2026 at 3:49 PM.