Who Has the Most Double Doubles in NBA History?

This blog post will take a look at the NBA players with the most double-doubles in history.

NBA Basics

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the premier professional basketball league in the United States and Canada. Founded in 1946, the league has grown to become a global phenomenon, with games and players from all over the world. In the NBA, a double double is when a player accumulates a double-digit number total in two of the five major statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks.

What is a double double?

In basketball, a double double is when a player accumulates a double-digit number total in two of the five standard statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks—in a game. The specific combination of statistical categories varies depending on historical moment and positioning; for example some era-defining players such as Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson filled up the stat sheet (20 points, 20 rebounds was not uncommon for Wilt), while modern-day centers Anthony Davis and Andre Drummond make their presence felt with points and rebounds. In the National Basketball Association (NBA), a double double is recorded when a player accumulates ten or more in two different statistical categories in a game. The NBA did not start tracking steals until 1973–74 or blocks until 1974–75, so triple doubles prior to those seasons were based on points, rebounds, and assists.

What is the NBA?

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is an American professional basketball league. It is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada), and is one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States. The NBA is one of the largest professional basketball leagues in the world in terms of popularity, salaries, level of competition, and number of players.

Key Players

In the history of the NBA, there have been many great players who have dazzled audiences with their skills on the court. But, who has the most double doubles in NBA history? A double double is when a player gets double digits in two statistical categories in a game. This can be points and rebounds, points and assists, or any other combination of statistics.

Oscar Robertson

Oscar Robertson, nicknamed “The Big O”, is an American retired professional basketball player who played for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks. The 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m), 220 lb (100 kg) Robertson played point guard and was a 12-time All-Star, 11-time member of the All-NBA Team, and one-time winner of the MVP award in 14 professional seasons. He is the only player in NBA history to average a triple-double for an entire season.

In 1962, Robertson led the Cincinnati Royals to an NBA championship and was named the Finals MVP. His career achievements led the Sporting News to declare him the second greatest player in pro basketball history trailing only Jerry West.

Magic Johnson

In his 12 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, Johnson racked up an impressive 10,141 assists, leading the league nine times. But he also was a gifted scorer, averaging 19.5 points per game during his career. In fact, Johnson is one of only three players in NBA history to average at least 11 assists and seven rebounds per game for his career. The others are Oscar Robertson and John Stockton.

Russell Westbrook

Russell Westbrook, who played his first 10 seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, is currently in his 11th season with the Houston Rockets. Averaging a double-double for his career, Westbrook holds the record for the most triple-doubles in a season with 42, which he accomplished in the 2016-2017 season. He was also named the NBA Most Valuable Player that year.

Technical Terms

In basketball, a double double is when a player accumulates a double-digit number total in two of five statistical categories—points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks—in a game. The most double doubles in NBA history is held by Wilt Chamberlain who had 138 double doubles in his career.

Field goal percentage

In basketball, field goal percentage (field goals made divided by total field goals attempted) is a statistic used to gauge a player’s shooting ability. A higher field goal percentage indicates better shooting.

The following is a list of National Basketball Association players by career regular season field goal percentage, with minimum 400 field goals made. Shaquille O’Neal is the leader in this stat, with a 60.2% field goal percentage.

Assists

In basketball, an assist is a pass to a teammate that directly leads to a score by field goal. The player receiving the assist is said to have been assisted. There are generally three statistics kept for assists, the assist, the steal and the turnover. A power forward who hustles and gets lots of offensive rebounds may rack up more assists than the point guard, who directs the offense but doesn’t necessarily get all the glory.

Rebounds

In basketball, a rebound, sometimes colloquially referred to as a board, is a statistic awarded to a player who retrieves the ball after a missed field goal or free throw.

Rebounds are given to a player who tips in a missed shot on his own team’s offensive end of the court, or who gathers the ball after it bounces off the rim following a teammate’s missed attempt. A rebound can also be given to a player who gains possession of the ball after any missed shot that bounces off the backboard. Rebounding gives players another opportunity to score points because they are able to retrieve the ball and put it back into play quickly.

Players who tend to be tall or have long arms are able to rebound well because they have an advantage over shorter players in terms of their reach. Players who are quick and agile are also able to get rebounds because they can get to the ball before taller players.

The Numbers

In the history of the NBA, there have been 148 players who have recorded at least 100 double doubles. Of those 148 players, 74 were centers, 33 were power forwards, and 41 were point guards. The player with the most double doubles in NBA history is Wilt Chamberlain. Chamberlain had 118 double doubles in the 1961-62 season.

Most double doubles in a season

The most double doubles in a season is held by Oscar Robertson, who had 41 in the 1961-1962 season. The next closest player is Russell Westbrook, who had 42 in the 2016-2017 season.

Most career double doubles

The NBA (National Basketball Association) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league was founded in 1946, and since then, there have been many great players who have graced the hardwood.

In basketball, a double double is when a player accumulates a double-digit number total in two of the five main statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. A lot of players have had great careers and have put up some amazing numbers, but only a handful of players have been able to consistently put up double doubles throughout their careers.

Here are the top 5 players in NBA history with the most career double doubles:

1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – He is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, and also has the most career double doubles with 1071. He played for 22 seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers, winning 6 NBA championships.

2. Wilt Chamberlain – He is second on the list with 954 career double doubles. He played for 16 seasons with the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, and Los Angeles Lakers. He won 2 NBA championships and was named NBA MVP 4 times.

3. Karl Malone – He played for 19 seasons with the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers, winning 2 NBA championships. He is third on the list with 948 career double doubles.

4. Bill Russell – He played for 13 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning an unprecedented 11 NBA championships. He is fourth on the list with 862 career double doubles.

5. Oscar Robertson -He played for 14 seasons with the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks, winning 1 NBA championship. He is fifth on the list with 801 career double doubles

The Legacy

When we talk about the greatest to ever play the game of basketball, certain names come to mind. MJ. Kobe. LeBron. But when we talk about the player with the most double doubles in NBA history, a different name comes to mind: Oscar Robertson. The Big O was a force to be reckoned with in his day, and his legacy continues to this day.

What the future holds

Only time will tell who will ultimately etch their name into the record books as the player with the most double-doubles in NBA history. But one thing is for sure, the legacy of the double double is in good hands with the likes of Russell Westbrook, Anthony Davis, James Harden, and Kevin Love leading the charge.