Scariest Triple-Double Threats in the NBA

There's really no other sport where one guy can take over all facets of the game and dominate your team quite like basketball. In the NBA, it's possible for one extremely talented player to take over and beat you pretty much single-handedly, at least on the stat sheet.

There are players out there who can just do everything—whether it be because of the players they play with, the extreme athleticism they have or just their overall basketball IQ which allows them to fill out a stat sheet across the board.

Obviously, there are guys like LeBron James and Andre Iguodala out there who are excellent ball-handlers and have the size to drag down rebounds easily. However, there are also those point guards out there who can put up the assist numbers every night and end up with double-digit rebounds on any given night.

So, here we have those players that are most capable of filling out the stat sheet all across the board and beating your team seemingly single-handedly.

15. Boris Diaw

The great experiment that has arisen mostly out of necessity out in Charlotte has pretty much been a failure up to this point, but I can't say I've been uninterested when watching the bloated, blubbery Boris DIaw play point center.

Diaw has led the league (at least as far as I've seen) in near triple-doubles, which I call Jason Kidds, as he's had near double-digit totals in points, rebounding and assists many times throughout the season already.

With Diaw controlling the ball so much throughout a game and his size allowing him to get rebounds it's just a matter of time until he drops a trip-dub on some unassuming team.

14. Jordan Crawford

Jordan Crawford is still a very raw talent, and as a rookie last season Washington stole him away from the Atlanta Hawks, and the player they got is very capable of putting up great numbers.

The young forward is playing for the Wizards, so getting minutes down the line will be no trouble as the Wizards should start to focus on their younger players down the line.

He doesn't average high numbers in rebounds or assists, but he's one of those explosive players who, when he's really in the game, is able to dial it in and every aspect of his game gets better.

13. Kyle Lowry

The emerging Houston Rockets point guard has really been impressing me with his Jason Kidd-style stat sheets over the past few weeks. Lowry will go out and throw around 18 assists and six boards, but then he'll get two points.

Already Lowry has been within striking distance of a triple-double five times, and with the Rockets having the players to finish off on his assists and his own ability to read the ball coming off the rim, it's only a matter of time until he pulls down his very own triple-double.

12. John Wall

It's kind of interesting having two members of the Washington Wizards on a list about accomplishing something positive, but maybe that speaks to the relative unimportance of one guy filling out a stat sheet.

Still, John Wall is a very tall point guard who is going to get his points and assists nearly every night, so it's just a matter of time until he falls into 10 rebounds in any given game.

Then again, with the Wizards struggling and Wall averaging just over seven assists a game this season, it could be harder for him to get that end of the triple-double than anything.

11. Jason Kidd

He's old, I know, but Jason Kidd is still capable of recording a triple-double even though everything is harder for him at this point in his career.

His sheer amount of basketball knowledge is going to allow for him to continue to score, rebound and assist; it's just all a matter of how much he can do each of these things, and whether he can do them all on the same night.

Still, Kidd's unequaled ability to read the rim as a guard allows for him to be in the perfect spot at the right time to get any given rebound and his years of experience allow for an assist at any time.

10. Deron Williams

Here we have a guy who has never even recorded double-digit rebounds in his NBA career, but he seems to be poised to get that first triple-double any day now.

With mediocre rebounders littering the floor in New Jersey (you know, everyone not named Kris Humphries) and Williams' huge usage rate, he should have his first double-digit rebounding game in the next few months.

That, plus the fact that he'll be getting his points and assists every night means a trip-dub is extremely likely for the talented guard this season.

9. Blake Griffin

Obviously with his size, Blake Griffin is going to be scoring at least 10 points and nearly grabbing 10 rebounds a game, so that part shouldn't be an issue.

The hardest part for him, especially this year compared to last, will be compiling enough assists to get the triple-double.

Griffin had one game all season long last year where he put up double-digit dimes, but he did that with Mo Williams as his point guard, not a combination of Chris Paul, Chauncey Billups and Williams.

Still, I think he's got a decent chance of doing it; he is prone to assist explosions from time to time, as seen from his seven last night.

8. Paul Pierce

The achy, creaky Paul Pierce still doesn't seem to be back on the top of his game, but as the season rolls along he should be able to loosen up a bit; that is, until the sheer number of games played catches up to him and he gets hurt again.

Still, Pierce has a game that oscillates a bit, meaning one night he'll have high rebounding numbers and the next he'll have high assist totals. They'll synch up at some point and he'll just have one of those "on" nights where everything goes right.

7. Dwyane Wade

While Dwyane Wade has proven to be much more injury-prone over the early stages of this season and with LeBron James emerging as the best "point" option for them at the moment, he should still be able to put together a few games where he'll threaten a triple-double.

Wade's numbers have obviously fallen off since his new comrades joined him during the summer of 2010, but he still has his nights every now and then when he just plays off the charts.

Dwyane is like Paul Pierce in that he'll have a good rebounding game and then a good assist game, putting the two together every once in a while creating a high probability for a triple-double.

6. Derrick Rose

Derrick Rose has started this season a bit hobbled, but nobody is too concerned about a few knocks on a young point guard such as himself.

Already this season, Rose has had two near triple-doubles, recording eight rebounds each time to go along with his high number of points and assists.

Rose has this game like LeBron James to the point where when he starts doing one thing well, everything starts happening easily, and his sheer athletic ability will allow for him to get those 10 rebounds at some point.

5. Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant, even in his waning age and with all the people screaming "ball hog" at him as he goes out and averages over 30 points a game, is still more than capable of a triple-double.

The Black Mamba nearly had a triple-double on New Year's Eve against the Nuggets when he finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds while falling just an assist short.

Put Kobe in a fast-paced game where he doesn't decide to completely take over and he's got every possibility of a triple-double.

4. Andre Iguodala

For some reason these days now that Andre Iguodala is averaging fewer points and making fewer highlight-reel plays, people have largely forgotten about him.

Well, I'm here to remember him. The leader of the Philadelphia 76ers, who are blowing everyone out so far this season, is still scoring enough and is a better rebounder and smarter passer than he ever was.

The only problem is that the Sixers don't rely on him as much to handle the ball, so he won't come across assists as easily, but he'll get them eventually.

3. Russell Westbrook

This uber-athlete breed of point guard is perhaps the second-most capable of pulling down a triple-double, right after the do-it-all forward like LeBron James and Andre Iguodala.

Westbrook has fallen back to his old self a bit lately, holding onto the ball for too long and shooting a few too many times from deep, but he's been shooting so well that it's hard to argue with it.

This has led to a decrease in assists, but it's just a matter of time until he has one of those games where his speed gets him to enough rebounds before anyone else and he ends up with a triple-double.

2. Rajon Rondo

The Boston Celtics point guard is the only NBAer so far this season to have notched that first triple-double, and after watching the Celtics so far this season, that won't be the last time.

Aside from his 18-point, 14-assist, 11-rebound performance against the Wizards on New Year's Day, Rondo has had four more near trip-dubs already this season.

It seems that we could have a new Jason Kidd in our midst with a point guard capable of doing everything you ask of him who has been pressured to develop a jumper early in his career.

1. LeBron James

No surprise here, right?

As the reigning king of the triple-double in the NBA, and the guy who has the ball in his hands on seemingly every play for the Miami Heat, LeBron James will have his own triple-double and then some before you know it.

He's one of the few people capable of having a triple-double on a bad night and with him on pace for another amazing statistical year, he should end up with four or five even in a shortened season.

LeBron's unequaled ability to pass like a guard yet rebound like a forward will always put him a step ahead of everyone else; it's his mental makeup that's going to challenge him going forward.

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