| Minneapolis/St. Paul - Minnesota Timberwolves forward
Kevin Garnett was named the NBA's Western Conference Player of the Week for
Games played Jan. 1-7, it was announced by the league today. This is the first
weekly honor for Garnett this season and the 15th overall in his career.
Garnett averaged 27.5 points (.488 FG%, .854 FT%), 14.5 rebounds and
5.0 assists as the Wolves went 4-0 on the week. Minnesota defeated Charlotte
(102-96) on the road while taking out San Antonio (103-101), Philadelphia
(104-102) and Houston (103-99) in three consecutive overtime wins at Target
Center. Garnett recorded point/rebound double-doubles in all four contests,
including his hitting his 18,000th point in the fourth quarter against the
Spurs, becoming the 51st player in NBA history to reach that mark. The nine-time
All-Star has now scored in double digits in 339 consecutive contests, the eighth
longest streak in NBA history. Garnett registered a season-high 32 points in the
Wolves win over the Bobcats Monday, his second 30-plus game of the season and
the 73rd of his career. He also hit the game winning shot on Friday against the
Sixers, marking the third buzzer-beater of his career and the 10th in franchise
history.
Last week saw Garnett pass Calvin Murphy and World B. Free for 51th
place on the all-time scoring list (Garnett - 18,029, Free - 17,955, Murphy -
17,949), while last month he surpassed both Sam Lacey and Bob Lanier for 32nd on
the all-time rebounding charts (Garnett - 9,952, Lanier - 9,698, Lacey - 9,687).
In his current position, Garnett stands just 48 rebounds shy of 10,000 for his
career, He leads the NBA in efficiency rating (29.31), ranks second in
rebounding (12.4) and 16th in scoring (22.4).
Gilbert Arenas was named the corresponding Eastern Conference Player of
the Week. Other nominees for Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week
were Cleveland's Drew Gooden, Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki, Detroit's Richard Hamilton,
Houston's Tracy McGrady, New York's Eddy Curry, Orlando's Dwight Howard, San
Antonio's Manu Ginobili and Toronto's Chris Bosh.
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