Dejounte Murray had a double-double this game by getting twelve rebounds to go along with his eighteen points. He was only ten assists (or six steals) away from a triple-double. It was his tenth game with double-digit rebounds this season. But how does a point guard not named Russell Westbrook, even a tall one like Murray, get that many boards? I bet he told LaMarcus Aldridge not to try so hard for rebounds. If there’s one thing I think LMA would be amenable to, it’s trying less hard in one area of the game so he has more energy for shooting jumpshots. If you told him he didn’t even have to run back on defense, he probably wouldn’t even if his team was getting massacred time and time again on the other end. This seems like the most likely course of events that has led Murray to being one of the best rebounding guards in the league.
I just ran the numbers (thanks basketball-reference, you allow me to sound smart sometimes) and Murray does indeed have the second-highest rebounding percentage of all guards, and he’s only a little bit behind Westbrook in that category (14.9% to 14.8%). I am of course disqualifying all the scrubs who have higher percentages but have only played in a few games (shout out to Marcus Paige, I don’t know who you are but keep getting those rebounds). Murray’s all the way in 79th place in assist percentage, but if he was good at EVERYTHING, then he’d be the next Westbrook instead of just being an extra-diet version of him.