The triple-double stopped being a big deal in the NBA a while ago.
Russell Westbrook averaged one across a full season in 2016-17, the first player to manage that since Oscar Robertson in 1961-62, and box scores have been filling up ever since.
Nikola Jokic and Josh Giddey post them most weeks now. Fans barely look up.
The quadruple-double is a different story. Since the NBA started tracking blocks and steals in 1973-74, it has happened four times — Nate Thurmond in Chicago, Alvin Robertson and David Robinson in San Antonio, and Hakeem Olajuwon in Houston. The last one came in February 1994.
There was a fifth, for about three days.
Every quadruple-double in NBA history
Nate Thurmond – Chicago Bulls vs Atlanta Hawks, October 18, 1974
Thurmond did it in his first game for the Bulls, on opening night of the 1974-75 season — 22 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists and 12 blocks.
Blocks had only become an official stat the year before. Thurmond was 33 and in the closing stretch of his career. It took another 12 years for anyone to match him.
Alvin Robertson – San Antonio Spurs vs Phoenix Suns, February 18, 1986
Robertson is the only guard on the list and the only player to get there through steals, finishing with 20 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals in a 120-114 Spurs win.
He was named Defensive Player of the Year that season and set a single-season steals record that still stands. Ten steals in a game has happened roughly two dozen times in league history.
Hakeem Olajuwon – Houston Rockets vs Milwaukee Bucks, March 29, 1990
Olajuwon put up 18 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists and 11 blocks in a 120-94 Rockets win. The assists were the surprise.
He was already the best shot-blocker of his era and retired as the all-time leader with 3,830, but passing was never his calling card. Robertson, by then a Buck, was on the wrong end of this one.
David Robinson – San Antonio Spurs vs Detroit Pistons, February 17, 1994
Robinson owns the only one with 30 points — 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 blocks in a 115-96 win over Detroit. He is also the only player on the list to win Rookie of the Year, MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and a championship.
Nobody has achieved the quadruple-double since The Admiral.
Almost Hakeem Olajuwon – Houston Rockets vs Golden State Warriors, March 3, 1990
For three days, the record books had five quadruple-doubles.
Olajuwon finished a 129-109 win over Golden State with 29 points, 18 rebounds, 11 blocks and nine assists — one short. Houston’s coach and PR staff went back through the tape, decided a pass earlier in the game should have counted, and issued a corrected box score reading 10 assists.
The league reviewed the same tape, disagreed, and changed it back to nine.
Who could be next
Josh Giddey has come the closest of anyone in the modern game. In a 146-115 Bulls win at the Lakers in March 2025, he finished with 15 points, 17 assists, 10 rebounds and eight steals. Giddey passed Michael Jordan on the all-time triple-double list this past season, but it’s a tough steals tally to hit.
Victor Wembanyama is the better bet, and he has come close. In Game 1 of the 2026 Western Conference semi-finals against Minnesota, the Spurs center recorded 11 points, 15 rebounds, 12 blocks and five assists. The blocks set a postseason record. San Antonio lost 104-102 anyway.
He was two assists away as a rookie too, going for 23 points, 15 rebounds, nine blocks and eight assists against Denver. The 2026 Defensive Player of the Year swats shots at a rate nobody else in the league. If a fifth one is coming, it is hard to see it belonging to anyone else.
READ MORE:
I’m convinced the Minnesota Timberwolves will make the NBA Finals — here’s why
Three NBA players under the most pressure next season, including Philadelphia 76ers star
3 free agents the Miami Heat need to consider after missing out on LeBron James
Receive exclusive NBA news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
