By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
The NBA has announced that Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić has been named the Western Conference Player of the Month for games played in March, while James Harden of the Brooklyn Nets won the award in the East.
Per the press release:
Jokić wins the award for the second time in his career and the second time this season, becoming the first Nugget to win the award twice in a single season. Jokić joins Carmelo Anthony and Alex English as the only players in franchise history to be honored as Player of the Month two or more times in their career.
Jokić, 26, averaged 27.1 points, 11.4 rebounds, 8.4 assists and 1.30 steals while shooting .585 from the field, .339 from three-point range and .827 from the charity stripe in 14 games. He helped lead the Nuggets to an 11-3 March, including a 6-1 road record and currently they sit 11 games over .500 in fifth place in the Western Conference with a 29-18 record.
Jokić recorded four triple doubles and had four games with 30+ points and 10+ rebounds. He also posted a double-double in 13 of 14 games. For the third time in his career, Jokić averaged at least 25.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists while shooting above 55.0% from the field in a month (min. 10 games) and is the only center since 1983 to record those numbers in a single month.
March was highlighted with a road win at Milwaukee on 3/2, where he posted 37 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds and two steals in 36 minutes, joining Wilt Chamberlain as the only two centers in NBA history to record 50+ career triple doubles. He had another historic performance vs. Charlotte on 3/17, recording 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in just 28 minutes, becoming the franchise leader in double-doubles passing Dikembe Mutombo’s 227. Jokić also produced a triple-double in back-to-back games, registering 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists vs. New Orleans on 3/21 and 28 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists at Orlando on 3/23.
The Sombor, Serbia native, was named Western Conference Player of the Week for games played from 3/15-3/21 after averaging 26.8 points, 12.3 rebounds, 8.5 assists and 1.75 steals in that span. Amongst the NBA, he ranks first in PER, first in double-doubles, tied for second in triple-doubles, sixth in assists per game, seventh in points per game, eighth in rebounds per game, eighth in steals per game and ninth in minutes per game. In 47 games this season, Jokić is averaging 26.8 points, 11.1 rebounds, 8.2 assists and 1.55 steals, shooting .571 from the field and .425 from three in 35.6 minutes.