Stephen Curry and Al Jefferson Named NBA Players of the Month for April

We didn't get to see a full month of regular-season action in April, but we saw enough for the NBA to determine its Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month.

The honors were well-deserved.

Through eight games in April, Jefferson averaged a monster double-double with 24.5 points and 14.3 rebounds per contest. The 29-year-old spearheaded the Charlotte Bobcats' successful season, leading them to the seventh seed in the East and their first playoff berth since 2010.

Curry, meanwhile, averaged 26.4 points and 9.9 assists through eight games. His April included a 47-point masterpiece in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. He's indisputably become the Golden State Warriors' most valuable player and one of the very best players league-wide.

He might prefer to pass the ball than go for 47, but it's nice to know he can flip that switch. The San Jose Mercury News' Tim Kawakami explains the dynamic:

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It's a fascinating development to watch: Curry is anything but a typical swaggering Alpha sports personality. It's not the way Curry was taught to play point guard -- he wants to share the ball, to trust his teammates, to lead with grace. 

But with center Andrew Bogut sidelined indefinitely by injury and with the Warriors at times struggling to produce consistent offense, the team's fate is almost totally in Curry's hands now.

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Now Curry turns his attention to the third-seeded Los Angeles Clippers, attempting to once again upset a team from sixth-seeded position. The Warriors did the same a season ago against the Denver Nuggets.

Jefferson will also be looking to cause an upset by shocking the world against the Miami Heat. That makes Curry's task look all the more achievable.