It's Monday, you know what that means! It's time to take a look back at the past week and see who the best players were around the league. Selections are based mostly on the player's stats, but (minus the rookie of the week) their team's record during the week is also taken into consideration. Click here to check out last week's if you missed it. If not, let's get into this.
Point Guard: Luka Dončić
With just under two weeks left of the season, most teams are fighting for their spots in the postseason, whether that be in the actual playoffs or in the play-in tournament. One of those teams is the Dallas Mavericks, who are having a strong season but aren't safe just yet. Currently sitting at 36-27 on the year, the Mavericks hold the 5th seed in the West right now, but are only a game ahead of the current top seed in the play-in tournament. The Mavericks are in a good place right now after a 3-1 week, but they'll need to keep up that quality of play to lock down a playoff spot. However, if Luka Dončić keeps playing the way he did this week, they should be fine. For the week, Dončić averaged 31.3 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 12 assists per game while shooting 53% from the field and 32% from three. Dončić closed out the week with his best performance, putting up 31 points and a career-high 20 assists in a win over the Wizards.
Honorable Mentions:
Stephen Curry: 32.8 PPG, 5 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.5 SPG, 45% FG, 44% 3P
Trae Young: 32.5 PPG, 5.5 APG, 1 SPG, 58% FG, 43% 3P, 96% FT
Shooting Guard: Jaylen Brown
Another team that is fighting to lock down a playoff spot late in the season is the Boston Celtics. Unlike the Mavericks, however, the Celtics are even closer to falling into the play-in tournament, as their 34-30 record has them at 6th in the East and tied with the 7th place and top seed in the play-in tournament, the Miami Heat. While they have the edge currently, a single loss could drop them out of a guaranteed playoff spot and into the play-in tournament. The Celtics will need to do better than the 2-2 performance they had this week, but if the play of their stars this week is anything to go off of, they'll likely be fine. The first one I want to talk about is Jaylen Brown. For the week Brown averaged 28.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 2 steals per game while shooting 41% from the field and 40% from three. Brown's best performance in a win came against the Charlotte Hornets, where he put up 38 points and 7 rebounds.
Honorable Mentions:
Bradley Beal: 30.6 PPG, 50% FG, 32% 3P, 92% FT
Kevin Porter Jr: 25.3 PPG, 4 RPG, 7.3 APG, 43% FG, 42% 3P
Small Forward: Jayson Tatum
As I mentioned, the Boston Celtics are currently fighting for a spot in the playoffs, but are on the brink of falling into the play-in tournament. They need strong play from their stars if they want to lock down that playoff spot. I just talked about Jaylen Brown, but the other player who balled out this past week for the Celtics was Jayson Tatum. For the week, Tatum averaged 38 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists per game while shooting 50% from the field and 46% from three. Tatum's best performance of the week was easily his showing against the Spurs in an overtime win to close out the week, Tatum would put up a career-high 60 points and 8 rebounds as he led the Celtics through a 32-point comeback, the third-largest in NBA history. Tatum would also tie Larry Bird's single-game scoring record for the Celtics and became the first Celtic to score 50 or more twice in one season.
Honorable Mentions:
Jimmy Butler: 25.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 5 APG, 48% FG, 96% FT
Michael Porter Jr: 26.8 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 1.3 BPG, 56% FG, 45% 3P
Power Forward: Kevin Durant
Four teams have locked down their spots in the playoffs so far. Unsurprisingly, one of those teams is the team with three superstars on the roster in the Brooklyn Nets. Along with moving into the top spot in the Eastern Conference, the Nets have secured a playoff spot with a 43-21 record, and look set to be one of the top seeds in the East come playoff time. Even without James Harden this week, the Nets were still one of the strongest in the league, going 3-1 over the last seven days. The star of the team this week was Kevin Durant, who played in all three of the Nets' wins and stole the show each time. For the week, Durant averaged 30.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, 6 assists, 1.7 steals, and a block per game while shooting 64% from the field, 58% from three, and 95% from the free-throw line. Durant's best performance came against the Pacers, where he put up a season-high 42 points and 10 assists.
Honorable Mentions:
DeMar DeRozan: 29 PPG, 10.7 APG, 1 SPG, 46% FG
Zion Williamson: 27 PPG, 5 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1 SPG, 61% FG
Center: Nikola Jokić
While they haven't locked down a playoff spot just yet, the Denver Nuggets probably aren't sweating the rest of the season. Currently 43-21 on the year, the Nuggets sit at 3rd in the West and well above the 7th place and top seed in the play-in tournament. Barring a catastrophic collapse and eight other teams enabling a God mode cheat code, the Nuggets are likely going to make the playoffs in some capacity. And that's not surprising, given they have the MVP front runner in Nikola Jokić, who continued to ball out as the Nuggets went a perfect 4-0 and extended their winning streak to five. For the week, Jokić averaged 26.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and a block per game while shooting 57% from the field, 50% from three, and 93% from the free-throw line. Jokić closed out the week with his best performance, putting up 30 points, 14 rebounds, and 7 assists against the Clippers.
Honorable Mentions:
Karl-Anthony Towns: 25.5 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.3 SPG, 46% FG, 37% 3P
Nikola Vučević: 22.3 PPG, 14.7 RPG, 1 BPG, 41% FG, 38% 3P
6th Man: Juan Hernangómez
I've written a lot about teams that are either in the playoffs or fighting for a playoff spot in this week's post. So let's look at the exact opposite of that...the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Timberwolves were the bottom of the barrel of the league for the majority of the season, only recently climbing out of last place in both the West and the entire league with a 20-45 record. They actually played much better in April...it's just a shame they waited until they were 12-37 to start playing like a real team. In a week where they went 3-1, the Timberwolves had a couple of strong performers over the last seven days. The first one I want to talk about is Juan Hernangómez off the bench. For the week, Hernangómez averaged 14.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 56% from the field and 52% from three. Hernangómez's best performance of the week came in a win over the Rockets, where he put up 22 points and 7 rebounds.
Honorable Mentions:
Frank Jackson: 21 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 50% FG, 48% 3P
DeMarcus Cousins: 16 PPG, 7 RPG, 1.5 BPG, 52% FG, 33% 3P, 100% FT
Rookie: Anthony Edwards
And I round off this week's post with another member of the Minnesota Timberwolves. As I mentioned, the Timberwolves were an absolute dumpster fire of a team up until about April, but there were some bright spots. One of those bright spots has been (at least in the second half of the season) Anthony Edwards. The 1st overall pick in 2020 had a rough go of things early in the season, primarily struggling with his efficiency, but really turned it around late in the season and is now a legit candidate for Rookie of the Year. This week, Edwards continued to show why he's a legit Rookie of the Year contender, averaging 21.8 points, 8 rebounds, 3.8 assists, a steal, and a block per game while shooting 42% from the field. Edwards' best performance came in a loss to the Pelicans, where he put up 29 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists.
Honorable Mentions:
Tyrese Haliburton: 18.5 PPG, 3 RPG, 9 APG, 1.8 SPG, 47% FG, 33% 3P, 100% FT
Cole Anthony: 17.6 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 5 APG, 46% FG, 50% 3P
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