Luka Doncic named NBA player of the Month in Western Conference / News - Basketnews.com

Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, and Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid have been named the NBA Western and Eastern Conference Players of the Month, respectively, for December.

Credit: AP-Scanpix Credit AP-Scanpix

The NBA announced today that the Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic and Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid have been named the Kia NBA Western Conference Players of the Month for games played in December.

Luka Doncic

Team:Dallas MavericksPosition:SGAge:23Height:201 cmWeight:104 kgBirth place:Ljubljana, SloveniaProfileNewsStatistics

It's the third time in his career he has received the honor (November 2019, February 2022), with Dirk Nowitzki (6) being the only other Maverick to win the award multiple times.

Doncic averaged 35.1 points (51.9 FG%, 42.4 3FG%), 8.5 rebounds, 9.3 assists, 1.6 steals, and 36.3 minutes in 15 games in December.

It marked the highest-scoring month in franchise history (min 10 games played), and the Mavericks went 11-4 in his 15 appearances during the month (11-6 overall).

The reigning two-time Western Conference Player of the Week scored 30-plus points in 12 of his 15 games in December, including 50-plus points on three occasions. Doncic also notched three of his eight triple-doubles during the month.

The three-time All-Star registered a game-high 50 points (17-30 FG, 6-12 3FG, 10-12 FT) to go along with a team-high 8 rebounds, a game-high 10 assists, and a game-high-tying three steals in 42 minutes in Dallas' 112-106 win at Houston on Dec 23.

Doncic became the fourth player in NBA history (since steals were first recorded in 1973-74) to total at least 50 points, 8 rebounds, 10 assists, and 3 steals in a game, joining James Harden (twice), LeBron James, and Russell Westbrook.

Doncic tallied a career-high 60 points (21-31 FG, 2-6 3FG, 16-22 FT) to go along with a career-high 21 rebounds, 10 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block in a career-high 47 minutes in Dallas 126-121 come-from-behind win over New York on Dec 27.

Doncic became the first player in NBA history to record a 60-point, 20-rebound triple-double and the second player to post a 60-point triple-double of any kind (Harden, 60 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists, vs. Orlando, Jan 30, 2018).

Luka Doncic

MIN:37.02PTS:34.31 (58.37%)REB:8.8As:8.86ST:1.71BL:0.6TO:3.6GM:35ProfileNBA2022/2023

His 60 points also set a new franchise record (previous 53, Dirk Nowitzki, vs. Houston, Dec 2, 2004, OT).

The 23-year-old closed out the 2022 calendar year by tallying a game-high 51 points (18-29 FG, 6-10 3FG), including 30 in the first half (22 in the first quarter), to go along with six rebounds, a game-high 9 assists, a season-high-tying 4 steals and 1 block in 37 minutes in the Mavericks' 126-125 victory at San Antonio on Dec 31.

He had 42 points through three quarters, breaking a tie with Mark Aguirre (22) for the most 40-point games in franchise history. Doncic netted 50-plus points three times over his final five games in December, totaling 228 points, 56 boards, and 51 assists over that five-game stretch (Dec 23 to 31).

He became the first player in NBA history to total 225-plus points, 50-plus rebounds, and 50-plus assists over any five-game run.

Doncic also became the first player to record three 50-point games over a 5-game span since Harden in January 2019.

For the season, Doncic is averaging a league-high 34.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 8.9 assists.

Meanwhile, Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid has been named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for December. This represents Embiid's fifth career Player of the Month award, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Allen Iverson for the most such honors in 76ers franchise history.

Embiid led the 76ers to a 9-4 record (.692) in the month, including a season-long 8-game win streak from Dec. 9-25. Philadelphia's .692 winning percentage ranked third in the NBA throughout the month.

Embiid earned the honor after leading all NBA players in scoring at 35.4 points per contest on .545 shooting from the floor and .417 from three-point range.

His totals in points (460), rebounds (129), and blocks (23) make him one of four players in league history with such numbers over 13 outings, joining himself (earlier this season) and Hall of Famers Moses Malone, Bob McAdoo, and Shaquille O'Neal.

Embiid posted at least 30 points in 10 games, joining Hall of Famers Wilt Chamberlain and Iverson as the only 76ers to have double-digit 30-point outings in the month of December.

Embiid (twice), Iverson (seven), and Chamberlain (five) are the only 76ers ever to post at least 10 30-point games in any month in franchise history.

Highlighting the month was Embiid's second 50-plus point game of the season on Dec 11 against Charlotte.

In the win, Embiid posted 53 points on a career-high 20 made field goals, adding 12 rebounds. He's one of five players in NBA history to post at least four career games of 50 points and 10 rebounds while shooting at least 60% from the field.

Embiid is the first center with multiple 50-point games in a single season since Hall of Famer David Robinson in 1993-94. He is also the first 76er with multiple games of 50-plus points since Iverson had three such contests during the 2004-05 season.

The Cameroon native went on to round out the month with his fifth career triple-double against theOklahoma City Thunder, making him the eighth 76er to produce five triple-doubles with the team.

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