NBA Names Joe Johnson Eastern Conference Player of the Week

Brooklyn Nets guard Joe Johnson has been hitting his stride as of late.

Johnson turned on his magic during the week of March 17 – March 23, 2014, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) took notice!

The NBA announced today that Brooklyn Nets guard Joe Johnson has been named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Monday, March 17 through Sunday, March 23, 2014.

It marks the first time this season a Nets player has captured the honor.

However, Johnson is no stranger to this accolade; this marks his seventh designation as NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week.

He previously earned the distinction six times as a member of the Atlanta Hawks, most recently for the week of March 19-25, 2012.

Johnson helped the Nets to the Eastern Conference's only 4-0 week behind averages of 22.0 points on 54.1% shooting (58.3% from three-point range), 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 32.5 minutes per game.

The All-Star guard scored 19 points (7-11 shooting) in 29 minutes in a 108-95 victory over the Phoenix Suns on March17. Two nights later, Johnson scored 20 points and grabbed a season-high eight rebounds in a 104-99 win over the Charlotte Bobcats. Johnson scored a game-high 27 points (10-16 shooting, 6-8 from three-point range) in 30 minutes in a 114-98 victory over the Boston Celtics March 21. Johnson completed his week by scoring a team-high 22 points (18 of which came in the second half and overtime) in a 107-104 victory over the Dallas Mavericks March 23. In the Dallas game, Johnson recorded his fourth game-winning or tying basket with under one minute to go in a game this season when he converted a driving layup with 9.9 seconds left to send the game to overtime.

In addition to helping the Nets to four straight victories, marking the second-longest active winning streak in the NBA, trailing only San Antonio's 13 straight victories, Johnson has also helped the Nets to a season-best 11 straight home victories and an Eastern Conference-best 27-10 record since January 1.

Johnson is the first Nets player to capture the award since Devin Harris for the week of February 23-March 1, 2009.