There have been some incredible performances in the NBA recently. Players are achieving feats we have never seen before, one-upping each other on a nearly nightly basis. Normally something like the Player of the Week award isn’t something that garners too much attention, but this week, you really had to earn it with stellar play.
For the Western Conference, it was none other than Luka Doncic who took home the award. Doncic was an easy selection after the game that he had against the New York Knicks when he carried Dallas to a 126-121 overtime victory.
With 33 seconds remaining in the game, the Mavericks trailed by nine points before mounting an improbable comeback. It was capped off by Doncic getting the rebound off of his own intentional free throw miss and shooting the ball in, all in one motion, to tie things up.
He finished the game with 60 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists, the first player in NBA history to reach those plateaus in a single game. The Mavericks went 3-0 in the week and are currently riding a seven-game winning streak. In those three games, Doncic averaged 48.7 points, 13 rebounds and 10.7 assists per game.
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In the Eastern Conference, it was Kristaps Porzingis taking home the award. He helped the Washington Wizards to a 4-0 record as they have gotten things back on track after a rough start to the season. They have now won five consecutive games and climbed into 10th place in the conference, holding down the final NBA Play-In Tournament spot.
Porzingis was dominant on both ends of the court for the Wizards, averaging 24.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game. The last three victories during that stretch all came by at least 19 points as Washington blew out the Phoenix Suns, Orlando Magic and Milwaukee Bucks.
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What makes this week’s award winners so interesting was the fact that Doncic and Porzingis were teammates. The Mavericks thought they had put together one of the best young duos in the NBA for years to come, but things just never clicked as well as they had hoped they would.
Injuries were a big part as Porzingis was in and out of the lineup constantly. He has been able to remain healthy for the Wizards, missing only four games thus far this season; two of which were for an illness. What he is accomplishing in Washington is what the Mavericks had envisioned him doing for them in Dallas.
