Nelson, Paul earn Player of the Week honors

ORLANDO’S NELSON AND NEW ORLEANS’ PAUL NAMED

NBA EASTERN AND WESTERN CONFERENCE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

NEW YORK, Jan. 20, 2009 – The Orlando Magic’s Jameer Nelson and the New Orleans Hornets’ Chris Paul today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, Jan. 12, through Sunday, Jan. 18. Nelson and Paul also shared Player of the Week honors for the week of Dec. 15.

Nelson helped the Magic to a 3-0 week on a West Coast road trip, averaging 24.7 points, 8.0 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.7 steals. On Jan. 16, Nelson scored 15 of his game-high-tying 28 points in the fourth quarter, including the go-ahead three-pointer with 35 seconds remaining in Orlando’s 109-103 win, as the Magic swept their season series with the Lakers for the first time in franchise history. In a win over Sacramento on Jan. 13, Nelson went 5-for-5 from three-point range, as the Magic set an NBA record with 23 three-pointers in the game. This marks Nelson’s second Player of the Week award of the season.

Paul earns his third Player of the Week award of the season after averaging 24.3 points, 9.5 assists, 6.8 rebounds and 2.3 steals. On Jan. 14, Paul recorded his fourth triple-double of the season with 33 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds in New Orleans’ 104-97 win over Dallas. With seven assists on Jan. 16 at Cleveland, Paul surpassed the 2,500 assist mark for his career. He accomplished the feat in 258 games, becoming the second-fastest player in NBA history to do so; Oscar Robertson hit 2,500 assists in 247 career games.

Here is a recap of the week for Nelson and Paul:

Jameer Nelson, Orlando Magic

Jan. 13 @ Sacramento: Tallied 23 points, 11 assists and five steals in a 139-107 win over the Kings.

Jan. 16 @ LA Lakers: Scored 28 points and added eight assists and six rebounds in a 109-103 win over the Lakers.

Jan. 17 @ Denver: Posted 23 points and five assists in a 106-88 win over the Nuggets.

Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets

Jan. 12 vs. New York: Posted 23 points, seven assists, five rebounds and two steals in a 101-95 loss to the Knicks.

Jan. 14 @ Dallas: Tallied 33 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds and seven steals in a 104-97 win over the Mavericks.

Jan. 16 @ Cleveland: Scored 18 points and added six assists and seven rebounds in a 92-78 loss to the Cavaliers.

Jan. 17 @ Detroit: Tallied 23 points, 14 assists and five rebounds in a 91-85 win over the Pistons.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Cleveland’s LeBron James, Houston’s Yao Ming, Indiana’s Danny Granger, Miami’s Dwyane Wade, New York’s David Lee, Philadelphia’s Andre Iguodala and Utah’s Deron Williams.