Only six players in NBA history had dished out more assists than Sacramento Kings guard Russell Westbrook going into Tuesday’s game against the San Antonio Spurs, and now that list is even shorter.
Westbrook moved into the top five on the NBA’s all-time list in a 132-104 loss to the Spurs before a crowd of 16,475 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
“It’s pretty special,” Westbrook said. “I’m always grateful to be able to go out and play and have an opportunity to do some stuff. Just grateful and blessed to be able to do that.”
Victor Wembanyama had 18 points and eight rebounds to lead a balanced attack for the Spurs (51-18), who are 19-2 since Feb. 1.
Keldon Johnson came off the bench to score 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting for San Antonio. Julian Champagnie had 17 points. Harrison Barnes scored 16 points while going 6 of 7 from the field and 4 of 5 from 3-point range. De’Aaron Fox had 15 points and six assists.
Rookie center Maxime Raynaud had a career-high 32 points and nine rebounds for the Kings (18-52), who had won four of their last five games. Fellow rookie Nique Clifford had 15 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
Westbrook was seventh with 10,333 career assists when the night began. He needed two assists to pass Mark Jackson for sixth and three assists to pass Steve Nash for fifth. Westbrook moved ahead of Jackson with an assist to Raynaud midway through the first quarter. He passed Nash on an assist to Raynaud with 5:00 to play in the first half.
Westbrook, 37, is an 18-year NBA veteran, an eight-time All-Star, a nine-time All-NBA selection, a former MVP and a future Hall of Famer. The only players with more assists than Westbrook are John Stockton (15,806), Chris Paul (12,552), Jason Kidd (12,091) and LeBron James (11,909).
Westbrook is the NBA’s all-time leader in triple-doubles with 209. He ranks 14th in points (27,160) and 15th in steals (2,037).
Kings coach Doug Christie said he also ranks among the very best point guards to ever play the game.
“He’s right up there at the top,” Christie said “He’s special player. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anybody that plays with the force and physicality.
“I was talking to Woody (Kings assistant coach Mike Woodson), and he looked at the number, and he was like, ‘He scored 27,000 points?’ And I was like, yeah, that’s a lot of points, but then you talk about the assists. You talk about the MVP. You talk about triple-doubles for a whole season. When you go down the line, he’s a generational, very, very special player and a special person.”
Welcome back
Fox returned to Sacramento for the second time since being traded to the Spurs in February 2025.
Fox spent seven-plus seasons in Sacramento after coming out of Kentucky as the No. 5 pick in the 2017 NBA draft. He helped the Kings end their 16-year playoff drought in 2022-23 and left an indelible mark on the franchise.
Fox scored a franchise-record 60 points in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Nov. 15, 2024. He ranks second in franchise history in steals (731), fourth in points (11,064), assists (3,146) and 3-point goals (789).
Christie said Fox holds a special place in the history of the Kings organization.
“To be such a high draft pick and to go through everything, get to the playoffs, all the different things he did, I think always you hold players like that in a very, very high regard, no doubt,” Christie said.
Up next
The Kings will play host to the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday in the third game of their current four-game homestand.
The 76ers (37-31) had won three of four going into Tuesday’s game against the Denver Nuggets. They are led by Tyrese Maxey, who is averaging 29.0 points and 6.7 assists, and Joel Embiid, who averages 26.6 points and 7.5 rebounds.
Maxey, who scored 40 points in a 113-111 victory over the Kings on Jan. 29 in Philadelphia, is out with a tendon injury in his right pinkie finger.
Jason Anderson is The Sacramento Bee’s Kings beat writer. He is a Sacramento native and a graduate of Fresno State, where he studied journalism and college basketball under the late Jerry Tarkanian.