By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
The latest chapter in Nikola Jokic’s potentially second straight MVP run was combined with a historic achievement. The Joker was named Player of the Week in the Western Conference to claim the award for the 11th time in his career and passed Carmelo Anthony for the most ever in the history of the Denver Nuggets.
Per Nuggets:
The NBA has announced that Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić has been named the Western Conference Player of the Week for games played from Monday, March 28th to Sunday, April 3rd.
Jokić wins the award for the second time this season and has now earned Western Conference Player of the Week honors 11 times in his career, surpassing Carmelo Anthony for the most in franchise history.
Jokić, 27, averaged 34.8 points, 17.3 rebounds, 8.5 assists, and 2.00 steals while shooting .671 from the field en route to a 3-1 week. He ranked first in the NBA in total rebounds for the week and among the Western Conference, he ranked first in points, first in field goal percentage, and third in assists. The Nuggets have now won five of their last seven games and currently sit in fifth in the Western Conference at 47-32.
Joker kicked off the week by registering his NBA-best 19th triple-double with 26 points, 19 rebounds, and 11 assists in a win at Charlotte on 3/28. He followed that up with 37 points (15-19 FG), 13 rebounds, and nine assists in a road win at Indiana. In Denver’s lone loss of the week, Nikola registered 38 points (14-21 FG), 19 rebounds, and eight assists vs. Minnesota on 4/1. The team bounced back with a road win over the L.A. Lakers on 4/3 that saw Jokić post 38 points (15-22 FG), 18 rebounds, six assists, three blocks, and two steals.
Jokić’s current stretch of three straight games with 35+ points on 65% shooting is tied for the longest streak in NBA history (O’Neal, Barkley, Dantley, Chamberlain). He is also the first Nugget with three straight 35+ point games since Anthony in 2008 and is the first player in NBA franchise history with three straight games with 35+ points and 10+ rebounds.
The Sombor, Serbia native, leads the NBA in PER, is second in rebounds per game, ninth in points per game, and eighth in assists per game while averaging 26.8 points, 13.7 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 1.40 steals in 33.3 minutes per game. No player in NBA history has ever averaged over 25.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 6.0 assists for an entire season.