NBA announces October-November awards: Jokic and Cunningham named Players of the Month, two Thunder players honored

On December 3rd Beijing time, the NBA announced the monthly awards for October and November. Nuggets' Jokic and Pistons' Cunningham were chosen as Players of the Month, Raptors' Barnes and Thunder's Wallace received Defensive Player of the Month, Mavericks' Flagg and Hornets' Knupel were named Rookies of the Month, and Thunder's Dagnote alongside Pistons' Bickerstaff were awarded Coach of the Month.

Players of the Month: Jokic and Cunningham

Nuggets center Jokic and Pistons guard Cunningham were honored as the Western and Eastern Conference Players of the Month for October and November, respectively.

This marks the ninth time in Jokic’s 11-year career that he has earned the Player of the Month award. His start to this season has been phenomenal, averaging a triple-double with 28.9 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 10.9 assists per game, while leading the Nuggets to a 14-5 record.

His shooting efficiency is even more impressive than his stats, boasting an overall field goal percentage of 63.7% and a three-point shooting percentage of 45.3%.

In the East, Cunningham’s Pistons have been one of the biggest surprises in the league during the first six weeks of the season. Although Detroit was expected to be a strong playoff contender, few NBA analysts anticipated the team would win 16 of their first 20 games and hold first place in the Eastern Conference by the end of November.

Cunningham has been the driving force behind the Pistons’ strong start, averaging 36.8 minutes, 28.8 points, 9.4 assists, and 6.4 rebounds across 17 games, with a shooting percentage of 45.6% and free throw accuracy at 81.5%.

The nominees are as follows—

East: Raptors’ Barnes, Celtics’ Brown, Knicks’ Brunson and Towns, Bulls’ Giddey, Hawks’ Johnson, 76ers’ Maxey, Cavaliers’ Mitchell, Heat’s Powell, Magic’s Wagner Jr.

West: Trail Blazers’ Avdija, Lakers’ Doncic and Reeves, Timberwolves’ Edwards, Thunder’s Alexander, Clippers’ Harden, Rockets’ Sengun

Defensive Players of the Month: Barnes and Wallace

Raptors forward Scottie Barnes was named the Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month for October and November, while Thunder guard Kessler Wallace earned the Western Conference honor.

Barnes led the impressive Raptors to a 14-7 record by the end of November, with the team’s defensive rating reaching 111.5, ranking sixth in the league. According to league stats, the 2.03-meter versatile forward averaged 4.0 steals per game, placing fourth in the East, and was the only player in the league during this period to record at least 30 steals and 30 blocks.

Meanwhile, Wallace’s Thunder are one of the league’s most defensively dominant teams, boasting a remarkable 20-1 record and a defensive rating of 103.6 in October and November. The Thunder’s win total during this stretch exceeds any other team by 3.5 games, and their defensive rating is nearly 7 points better per 100 possessions than the second-ranked Rockets (110.3).

Although the Thunder’s strong defense is a team effort, Wallace led the league early in the season with an average of 2.2 steals per game. Despite playing only 28.6 minutes per game, he averaged 5.0 steals, ranking first among all Western Conference players.

This is the first time in their careers that Barnes and Wallace have won the Defensive Player of the Month award, which was officially established last season.

The nominees are as follows—

East: Cavaliers’ Mobley, Heat’s Adebayo, Hawks’ Dyson Daniels, Pistons’ Stewart

West: Thunder’s Dort and Holmgren, Rockets’ Amen Thompson

Rookies of the Month: Flagg and Knupel

Mavericks’ Flagg and Hornets’ Knupel were named the Western and Eastern Conference Rookies of the Month for October and November, respectively.

The NBA noted that since the 2001-02 season, when the league began awarding Rookies of the Month separately for East and West, this is the first time both winners come from the same university (Duke University).

As this year’s top draft pick, Flagg had a slow start with the struggling Mavericks but significantly improved in November, culminating in a career-high 35 points in Saturday’s win over the Clippers, perfectly capping off his November performance.

Across October and November, the 18-year-old forward played 20 games, averaging 34.0 minutes, 16.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.4 steals. Although his three-point shooting was only 25.3%, his overall field goal percentage (46.2%) and free throw percentage (80.3%) remained solid.

In the Eastern Conference, Knupel secured the honor. The fourth overall pick played just one season at Duke, where he was a teammate of Flagg, and quickly became a key offensive player for the Hornets after entering the league.

In his first 20 career games, Knupel posted shooting percentages of 47.0% (field goals), 41.3% (three-pointers), and 89.8% (free throws), averaging 18.4 points, along with 5.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.

The nominees are as follows—

East: 76ers’ Echekum, Hornets’ Kalkbrenner

West: Grizzlies’ Coward, Pelicans’ Fils and Quinn

Coaches of the Month: Dagnote and Bickerstaff

Thunder’s Dagnote was named Western Conference Coach of the Month after leading the team to the league’s best 20-1 record in October and November. This marks Dagnote’s fourth career Coach of the Month award.

Pistons’ Bickerstaff earned Eastern Conference Coach of the Month honors by guiding Detroit to a 16-4 record, the best in the East during this period. This is Bickerstaff’s third career Coach of the Month award.

The nominees are as follows—

East: Cavaliers’ Atkinson, Knicks’ Brown, Magic’s Mobley, Raptors’ Rajakovic, Hawks’ Snyder, Heat’s Spoelstra

West: Nuggets’ Adelman, Spurs’ Johnson, Suns’ Otte, Rockets’ Udoka