Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson were named NBA Players of the Week on Monday, the league announced.
Jokic captured the Western Conference honor for the second consecutive week and the 19th time in his career after powering Denver to three straight road victories. The three-time MVP averaged 39.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 1.7 steals while shooting 73.7 percent from the field, 64.3 percent from three-point range and 88.9 percent at the foul line.
The highlight came in a 55-point performance against the Clippers. Jokic piled up 52 points, 11 rebounds and six assists through three quarters, becoming the first player with those numbers in that span since play-by-play tracking began in 1997-98. He finished with 55 points and 12 boards on 18-of-23 shooting, including 5-of-6 from deep and 14-of-16 at the stripe in 34 minutes.
The Nuggets have won seven in a row and sit at 10-2, trailing only the 13-1 Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference.
Johnson earned his first Eastern Conference award after guiding Atlanta to a 4-0 sweep of its Western road trip—the franchise’s first perfect trip of at least four games since the 1970-71 season. The 23-year-old averaged 24.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, 9.3 assists and 2.5 steals on 60.3 percent shooting overall, 57.1 percent from long range and 78.3 percent at the line.
His week featured a career night in Utah with 31 points, 18 rebounds, 14 assists and seven steals, marking the first time a player has reached or exceeded those numbers in a game since steals became an official statistic in 1973-74. Atlanta improved to 9-5, tied for the No. 3 seed in the East.
Other nominees in the West were Stephen Curry, Luka Doncic, Anthony Edwards, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, James Harden, Lauri Markkanen and Alperen Sengun. Eastern Conference nominees included Giannis Antetokounmpo, Scottie Barnes, Jaylen Brown, Pistons two-way guard Daniss Jenkins, Karl-Anthony Towns and Franz Wagner.
Source: Hoops Rumors
