Portland Trail Blazers teammates Deni Avdija and Shaedon Sharpe were both nominated for the NBA’s Western Conference Player of the Week for Dec. 15-21.
In two games this past week, Avdija averaged 29.5 points (on 48.6% shooting), 8 assists, 6 rebounds and 1 steal to lead the Blazers to two close wins over the Sacramento Kings. Sharpe also played a sizable role in both wins. He averaged 24.5 points, 4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game, while shooting 51.2% from the field and a blistering 60% on 3s.
Turnovers represented the only real blemish in both players’ box scores this week. Avdija averaged 5 turnovers per game, while Sharpe averaged 4.5.
The Blazers teammates lost out to Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr., who took home the honor for the Western Conference. Jackson averaged 27 points, 8 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game to lead Memphis to a 2-1 record. New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week. He averaged 31.3 points, 8 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game as the Knicks also went 2-1.
Alongside Sharpe and Avdija, other Western Conference nominees included Minnesota Timberwolves teammates Rudy Gobert and Anthony Edwards, Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic.
Eastern Conference nominees included Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham, Chicago Bulls teammates Josh Giddey and Nikola Vucevic, Charlotte Hornets guard Kon Knueppel, Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey, and Boston Celtics guard Derrick White.
