Ricky Rubio and Kyrie Irving Named Western, Eastern Conference Rookies of Month

Since opening day, Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio and Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving have done nothing but leave their marks on the league.

Today, the NBA named Rubio and Irving as the Western and Eastern Conference Rookies of the Month, respectively.

The award marks Rubio's first, and it is only the fourth time in franchise history a Timberwolves player has received the title. Rubio is preceded by Stephon Marbury (Jan. 1997), Randy Foye (Dec. 2006) and current teammate Kevin Love (Mar. 2009).

Although the young point guard is only No. 5 among rookies in scoring with his average of 11 points per game, he holds the No. 1 spot for assists (8.9) and steals (2.24) per game. Possibly even more impressive is this: Rubio ranks fourth in assists and third in steals in the league as a whole. On Jan. 8, Rubio dished out a career-high 14 assists in Washington.

"I think probably the biggest thing I really love about [Rubio] is he's a competitor," Wolves coach Rick Adelman commented. "He doesn't back down from anybody. He gets a lot of attention but he keeps an even keel. He doesn't get too high, too low. He just plays. He's been better than I thought he was going to be."

Just as Rubio proved an unsurprising choice for the Western Conference award, Irving seemed a no-brainer for the East.

He played only one year at Duke University before being drafted No. 1 overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers. At only 19 years old, Irving is already averaging 18.1 points per game, 4.9 assists and is shooting 51 percent from the field.

One of Irving's strongest points is his fourth-quarter play.

"[Kyrie] just knows that that is winning time," Cleveland coach Byron Scott said. "That’s the time right there in the fourth quarter that you have a chance to win the ball game. His focus is even more heightened than when the game starts. He’s just doing a great job in the fourth quarter."

According to Sherwood Strauss of Hoopspeak, "Sometimes it seems as though the only shocking aspect of Kyrie's success is how shocked people are by it."

The Timberwolves and the Cavaliers had the worst records in the league last season. This year, their teams are being led into a new era by new additions to the roster.

Expect both Rubio and Irving to continue acquiring recognition and awards throughout their careers.

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