The Atlanta Hawks’ Al Horford and the Portland Trail Blazers’ LaMarcus Aldridge on Monday were named NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played December 15-21.
Horford led the Hawks to a 3-0 record, which included a home win over the Chicago Bulls and road wins over the Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets. He led the Hawks in scoring at 18.3 ppg and stuffed the stat sheet with 6.7 rpg, 5.0 apg, 1.67 bpg and 1.0 spg.
Horford’s .605 field goal percentage ranked eighth in the conference. On December 15, he posted 21 points on 10-of-19 shooting, and added 10 rebounds, six assists and two steals as the Hawks topped the Bulls 93-86. Winners of 9-of-10 and with a 19-7 (.731) overall mark, the Hawks are tied for the Eastern Conference’s second best record.
Aldridge helped the Trail Blazers to a 4-0 mark on the week, which included two wins over the San Antonio Spurs and wins over the Milwaukee Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans. Aldridge, who posted point-rebound double-doubles in all four games, ranked sixth in the West in scoring (26.3 ppg), second in rebounding (14.3 rpg), and eighth in steals (2.25 spg).
On December 19, Aldridge collected 32 points, 16 rebounds, five steals and two blocks during a 129-119 triple-overtime win over the Spurs in San Antonio. At 22-6 (.786), Portland owns the second best record in the West.
Here is a recap of the week for Horford and Aldridge:
AL HORFORD, ATLANTA HAWKS
December 15 v Chicago: Tallied 21 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in a 93-86 win over the Bulls.
December 17 @ Cleveland: Scored 20 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field, and added four assists and two blocks in a 127-98 win over the Cavaliers.
December 20 @ Houston: Scored 14 points and added eight rebounds, five assists, three blocks and one steal during a 104-97 win over the Rockets.
LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE, PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
December 15 v San Antonio: Collected 23 points and 14 rebounds during a 108-95 win over the Spurs.
December 19 @ San Antonio: Posted 32 points, 16 boards, five steals and two blocks in a 129-119 triple-overtime win over the Spurs.
December 20 @ New Orleans: Tallied 27 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, two blocks and two assists during a 114-88 win over the Pelicans.
Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Boston’s Kelly Olynyk, Chicago’s Jimmy Butler, Cleveland’s LeBron James, Dallas’ Monta Ellis, Los Angeles Clippers’ Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan, New Orleans’ Anthony Davis, Portland’s Damian Lillard, and Toronto’s Kyle Lowry.
