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Jeff Teague and Monta Ellis Named NBA Players of the Week for April 7-13
April 14, 2014
According to NBA.com and Mavs.com, Atlanta Hawks point guard Jeff Teague and Dallas Mavericks shooting guard Monta Ellis have been named NBA Players of the Week for their performances from April 7 through April 13.
Teague helped the Hawks clinch a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference by leading his squad to a 3-1 record during the week—including wins over the Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets and Miami Heat. Against the two-time defending champs, the 25-year-old notched 25 points, four rebounds, three assists and four steals.
During that span, Atlanta’s floor general averaged 20.3 points, 5.8 assists and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 50.9 percent from the floor.
Ellis, meanwhile, was rewarded for his dominant performance during a 101-98 win over the Phoenix Suns on April 12, in which Dallas clinched its playoff spot out West.
He finished the game with 37 points on 15-of-23 shooting (65.2 percent) to accompany five assists, four rebounds and two steals.
For the week, the 28-year-old veteran averaged 25.7 points, 4.7 assists and four rebounds per contest. The Mavericks posted a 2-1 record in three games.
Teague isn’t shooting as efficiently as he did during 2012-13, but he’s been on fire in April, shooting 52.1 percent from the field with game averages of 21 points and 6.4 assists.
Ellis has proven himself as a solid free-agent pickup for Mark Cuban's crew, but will continue to be a key X-factor beside future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki in the 2014 playoffs.
If he fails to play well by alleviating some of Dirk's scoring burden, the Mavs won't have any chance of upsetting a higher playoff seed in the first round.