The Toronto Raptors’ DeMar DeRozan and the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry today were named the Kia NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month, respectively, for games played in January.
DeRozan ranked second in the Eastern Conference in scoring (25.3 ppg) and added 5.9 assists as the Raptors went 10-5 in January to pull within a game and a half of the East-leading Boston Celtics. The 6-7 guard scored at least 30 points in four of 15 games, highlighted by a franchise-record 52 points in a 131-127 overtime victory against the Milwaukee Bucks on Jan. 1. DeRozan recorded at least eight assists four times and posted the highest assist average for any month of his nine-year career.
The Warriors were 10-2 with Curry in the lineup in January, with six of those wins coming on the road. (Golden State went 11-3 overall.) The 6-3 guard led the NBA in scoring (29.5 ppg) and added 6.7 assists and 5.1 rebounds while shooting 51.4 percent from the field and 46.3 percent from three-point range. Curry scored at least 30 points on six occasions, including a season-high 49 points in a 109-105 win over the Celtics on Jan. 27. He connected on an NBA-high 62 three-pointers for the month, including eight threes as part of a 45-point effort in a 121-105 victory against the LA Clippers on Jan. 6.
DeRozan and Curry will play together on Team Stephen in the 2018 NBA All-Star Game, which will be played on Sunday, Feb. 18 at Staples Center in Los Angeles (8 p.m. ET; TNT/ESPN Radio). Curry drafted DeRozan for Team Stephen after both players were voted to start the 67th NBA All-Star Game.
Here are additional highlights for DeRozan and Curry in January:
DeMar DeRozan, Toronto Raptors
Jan. 3 @ Chicago: Hit five three-pointers and made all 10 of his free throw attempts as part of a 35-point effort in a 124-115 win over the Bulls.
Jan. 8 @ Brooklyn: Scored 35 points, including the go-ahead three-point play with 26.1 seconds left in overtime, in a 114-113 victory against the Nets.
Jan. 30 vs. Minnesota: Contributed 23 points, eight assists and four rebounds in a 109-104 victory over the Timberwolves.
Jan. 30 vs. Minnesota: Contributed 23 points, eight assists and four rebounds in a 109-104 victory over the Timberwolves.
Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Jan. 3 @ Houston: Scored a team-high 29 points and added nine rebounds and five assists in a 124-114 victory over the Rockets.
Jan. 17 @ Chicago: Recorded 30 points, nine rebounds and four assists in a 119-112 win against the Bulls.
Jan. 23 vs. New York: Shot 8-for-15 from three-point range and finished with 32 points and seven assists in a 123-112 win over the Knicks.
Other nominees for the Kia NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month were Boston’s Kyrie Irving, Indiana’s Victor Oladipo, the LA Clippers’ Lou Williams, Miami’s Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, New Orleans’ Anthony Davis, Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook and Portland’s Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.
