NBA March in review: Top 11 Players – (Part 2)
8. Dwyane Wade – Miami Heat
After a December to remember, in which he started the Miami Heat's resurgence, Dwyane Wade again set the NBA courts alight in March. Not only did the All-Star guard average a league second-best 26.6 points per game on a 48.6 percent shooting during the month,
he also scored 30 points or more on six occasions. In addition to that, he also paced his team with a staggering 1.8 blocks and 1.7 steals per game.
His most prolific performance came against the Philadelphia 76ers on 25th March. Leading a spirited second half fight back from the Heat, Wade had a brilliant night with 39 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists and five blocks.
7. Kevin Durant – Oklahoma City Thunder
Kevin Durant is the face of the Oklahoma City Thunder. The small forward, who has been the key cog of the Oklahoma City setup for some time now, was not at his best in the month of March.
Even though he has the best scoring average this season at 27.8, Durant only banged the rim at an average of 25.5 points this month. However, such is the flair and talent of the man, that a partially firing Durant is better than most forwards in the league.
His worst performance of the month came in the form of a 20-point night in a home loss against the Toronto Raptors on 20th March. That was only one of two losses that the Thunder endured in 14 games this month. Durant however, capped the month with a signature
39-point performance in an overtime one-point humdinger against the Golden State Warriors.
6. Derrick Rose – Chicago Bulls
It may be surprising for some to see Derrick Rose outside the top five, given his strong contention for this year’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. Derrick Rose is a beast on the court; there is no doubting that. He is the man that once again made Chicago
believe they could win the Championship.
However, the fact of the matter is that Rose has been unable to live up to his February heroics this month. Although he scored slightly above his scoring average for the season, it was a far cry from his 26.4 points per game in February. In addition to that,
his on field shooting also plummeted from 44 percent to about 41.6 percent.
However, such is the aura of the second year point guard that even when he struggles on one front, he compensates with an outburst of brilliance in another domain. One such highlight came in the game against the Indiana Pacers on 18th March, when he made
it to the charity stripe a staggering 21 times.
His best performance of the month came against the Milwaukee Bucks on 26th March, when he unleashed a 30 points and 17 assists performance to spearhead the Bulls to a 95-87 victory. Two nights later against the Philadelphia 76ers though, Rose had a horror
night, as he committed 10 turnovers in a 97-85 loss.
Disclaimer: The ideas expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of bettor.com
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