LeBron James becoming prolific in his triple-double near-misses

The only things really keeping LeBron James from a triple-double on Friday night were the scoreboard and a bounce or two.

With 2:28 to play and his Miami Heat leading the Philadelphia 76ers 98-81, coach Erik Spoelstra sat James down. It makes sense, as he had already played 37 minutes and the game was well in hand.

But James exited two rebounds shy of a triple-double, finishing with 21 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists. 

James would surely tell you that it doesn't matter, and inching up the all-time leaderboard in the category is of no consequence (James ranks seventh all-time with 36 triple-doubles, well behind Oscar Robertson's 181 but within striking distance of Larry Bird's 59 for fifth on the list).

James' near-miss is a common occurrence, however, speaking to how difficult the feat is and to how James rarely goes stat-chasing. Still, the number of times he's come very close is startling (per Basketball Reference).

What those show is that since 1985-86, when the Basketball Reference database begins, James ranks third in both triple-doubles missed by one or two rebounds and triple-doubles missed by one or two assists.

Here's how he stacks up in terms of triple-doubles plus near-misses (again, only since 1985-86):

That's a lot of stats.

James has averaged 27.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists for his career. Only five players have managed that in even one season, and James is the only player on that lofty perch for his career.