John Wall, Karl-Anthony Towns named Players of the Week

NEW YORK -- The Washington Wizards’ John Wall and the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Karl-Anthony Towns today were named NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, March 6 through Sunday, March 12.

Wall led the Wizards to a 4-0 week, with all of Washington’s wins coming on the road. He paced the East in scoring (29.8 ppg) and assists (11.3 apg) while adding 3.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals. On March 7, the 26-year-old recorded 25 points, 14 assists, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks in a 131-127 victory over the Phoenix Suns. On March 11, Wall tallied 39 points and nine assists as Wizards erased a 21-point halftime deficit in a 125-124 overtime win over the Portland Trail Blazers.

Towns averaged 29.0 points (fourth in the West) on 63.3 percent shooting and 12.3 rebounds (tied for fourth) as the Timberwolves went 2-1. On March 8, he scored 29 points on 14-for-21 shooting and added 14 rebounds in a 107-91 win over the L.A. Clippers. On March 11, the 21-year-old scored a game-high 35 points on 14-for-21 shooting to go with 14 rebounds and two blocks in 102-95 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. It was the 13th time this season that Towns has scored at least 30 points.

Here is a recap of the week for Wall and Towns:

John Wall, Washington Wizards

March 7 @ Phoenix: Finished with 25 points, 14 assists, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks in a 131-127 win over the Suns.
March 8 @ Denver: Posted 30 points and 10 assists in a 123-113 win over the Nuggets.
March 10 @ Sacramento: Scored 25 points and added 12 assists in a 130-122 win over the Kings.
March 11 @ Portland: Poured in 39 points on 13-of-23 shooting in a 125-124 overtime win over the Trail Blazers.

Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves

March 8 vs. LA Clippers: Tallied 29 points, 14 rebounds and two assists in a 107-91 victory over the Clippers.
March 10 vs. Golden State: Recorded 23 points, nine rebounds, two blocks and two assists in a 103-102 victory over the Warriors.
March 11 @ Milwaukee: Finished with 35 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks in a 102-95 loss to the Bucks.  

Other nominees for the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Atlanta’s Dennis Schröder, Detroit’s Andre Drummond, Houston’s James Harden, Indiana’s Paul George, Miami’s Dion Waiters and Hassan Whiteside, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, New Orleans’ Anthony Davis, Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook, Philadelphia’s Dario Saric, Phoenix’s Devin Booker, Portland’s Damian Lillard and Washington’s Bradley Beal.

Timberwolves’ Karl-Anthony Towns unanimously wins 2015-16 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Award

NBA Official Release.

NEW YORK – The Minnesota Timberwolves’ Karl-Anthony Towns, who set franchise rookie records in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots and field goal percentage, has unanimously won the 2015-16 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Award, the NBA announced Monday.  The 7-foot center becomes the fifth unanimous winner since 1984 and joins teammate Andrew Wiggins, the 2014-15 honoree, to make the Timberwolves the first team with back-to-back winners in 42 years.

Towns received all 130 first-place votes (650 points) from a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters in the United States and Canada, joining Damian Lillard (2012-13 season), Blake Griffin (2010-11), David Robinson (1989-90) and Ralph Sampson (1983-84) as unanimous winners in the last 32 years.  The New York Knicks’ Kristaps Porzingis finished second with 363 points, and the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic was third with 59 points.  Players were awarded five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote.

The No. 1 overall pick in NBA Draft 2015 presented by State Farm, Towns led all rookies in scoring (18.3 ppg) and rebounding (10.5 rpg, eighth in the NBA) and ranked second in blocks (1.68 bpg, 10th in the NBA) – making him the league’s only player to reach those averages in the three categories.  He also ranked third in the NBA in double-doubles (51) and eighth in field goal percentage (54.2).  Towns was one of six players in the league to start all 82 games.

The 20-year-old Towns swept all six Kia NBA Western Conference Rookie of the Month awards on his way to becoming the seventh rookie in NBA history to average at least 18 points, 10 rebounds and 1.5 blocks and shoot 50 percent or better from the field.  Since blocks became an official statistic in 1973-74, the other players to post those numbers are Sampson (1983-84), Hakeem Olajuwon (1984-85), Robinson (1989-90), Alonzo Mourning (1992-93), Shaquille O’Neal (1992-93) and Tim Duncan (1997-98).

Before last season, the Timberwolves had never had a Kia NBA Rookie of the Year winner since joining the NBA for the 1989-90 season.  With Towns and Wiggins now honored in back-to-back years, the Timberwolves are the first team with consecutive winners since the Buffalo Braves in 1972-73 (Bob McAdoo) and 1973-74 (Ernie DiGregorio).

Towns receives the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy, which is named in honor of one of the NBA’s founders.  Gottlieb coached the Philadelphia Warriors to the NBA’s first championship, in 1946-47.

As part of its support of the Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Award, Kia Motors America (KMA) will donate a brand new Sorento CUV to theMinnesota Chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society on Towns’ behalf.  Kia will present a 2016 Sorento to the charity of choice of each of five 2015-16 year-end award winners as part of the Kia NBA Performance Awards.  Following this season, Kia will have donated a total of 43 new vehicles to charitable organizations since its support of the NBA’s prestigious honors began in 2008.

The 2015-16 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Award is part of a series of on-court performance awards called the Kia NBA Performance Awards.  The series, in its ninth season, is part of a multiyear marketing partnership between Kia Motors and the NBA, and includes five of the league’s most prestigious year-end honors: Kia Most Valuable Player, Kia Defensive Player of the Year, Kia Sixth Man, Kia Most Improved Player and Kia Rookie of the Year.  The series also includes the Kia NBA Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month and the Kia NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month during the regular season.  Kia Motors is the Official Automotive Partner of the NBA and the Kia Optima is the league’s Official Vehicle.  For more information, please visit www.kia.com/NBA.

For the third year in a row, complete media voting results for each NBA annual award will be posted on NBA.com/official after the announcement of each winner.  Click here for those results.

Below are the voting results for the 2015-16 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Award. The balloting was tabulated by the independent accounting firm of Ernst & Young LLP.