Go Wiz!
John Wall wins Eastern Conference rookie of the month
By Michael Lee
John Wall finally ended the stranglehold that New York Knicks guard Landy Fields had on the Eastern Conference rookie of the month honors, as the No. 1 overall pick was awarded the honor on Tuesday for the month of January.
Wall averaged 13.9 points and 10.5 assists, but more importantly, he played in every game, although he was admittedly pushing through pain in his left foot, both knees, and sports a deep gash inside his left thumb from a floor burn.
His production in his first two months of the season had been overshadowed by injuries that sidelined him for 12 of the first 27 games. But he had a memorable January, in which became the first rookie in NBA history to have at least nine assists in 10 straight games. He also had 164 assists in the month, which were the most by a rookie since Mark Jackson had 172 assists for the Knicks in 1988.
Wall played in all 16 games in January, and collected 10 double-doubles, as the Wizards went 5-11. Jackson holds the record for most double doubles by a rookie guard since Jackson had 12 in March, 1988. He had five games with 13 or more assists, and ranks fifth in the league in assists at 9.3 per game.
Wall scored 22 points with nine rebounds in a win over Sacramento, had 19 points and a career-high 15 assists in a win over Utah, and scored 16 points -- including the game-winning three-pointer -- in a victory over the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics. He arguably had a better month in October/November, when he averaged 18 points and 9.1 assists, but he also missed six games because of a sprained left foot.
Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin, the front-runner for rookie of the year, won Western Conference rookie of the month for the third time. Griffin averaged 26 points, 13.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists.
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