NBA December Awards
Team of the month: Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks climbed their way to the top standing in the Eastern Conference and are running away with the Southeast Division with a 14-2 record in December. Their month included wins against the Bulls, Clippers, Cavaliers (twice) at Houston, at Portland, and at Dallas.
Our last 20 games: W W W W W W W W W Ugh, Tobias Harris W W W W W Ugh, Tobias Harris’ former team W W W W
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 4, 2015
Player of the month: Damian Lillard
Lillard snapped in December. He scored double figures in every game, which included his 35 against Chicago, 43 in the triple overtime win against the Spurs, 40 in the overtime win against Oklahoma City (you know what time it is), while averaging over 6 assists per game over the month.
Coach of the month: Mike Budenholzer
Budenholzer is coaching a team without a perennial All-Star talent to elite standing in the league.
Rookie of the month: Nikola Mirotic
Even though that kid in Minnesota did have a great month and seems to be coming into his own, our society voted unanimously on Nikola Mirotic for the Bulls. He’s played a bigger and more important role for Chicago off the bench as a stretch forward. He dropped 27 points and 8 rebounds in a big win against Memphis on the 19th.
Fail of the month: New York Knicks
The New York Knicks earned this award without need for a popular vote.
Sleeper of the month: Shabazz Muhammad
Shabazz Muhammad might be playing for a bad team but in December he really upped his play. He had seven games of 20+ points including a 30-point game against Utah. Apparently his diet is better and he’s shed some weight recently. It showed in December.
