SAN ANTONIO – The good news continues to roll in for the San Antonio Spurs. This time, Stephon Castle earned himself some shine.
Two days after the team acquired All-Star guard De’Aaron Fox from the Sacramento Kings, the NBA named Castle as January’s Western Conference Rookie of the Month on Tuesday afternoon.
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While the Spurs have taken a step back in January (4-8 record), Castle’s reputation as a premium defender and an individual scorer is taking a step forward.
The 20-year-old, who made 10 starts in the Spurs' 12 January games, averaged 14.9 points, 3.6 assists and 3.0 rebounds on an average of 27 minutes per game.
Castle’s 14.9 points per game in January was the highest scoring among all NBA rookies. He also leads all rookies in scoring (12.2 points) and total steals (37) this season.
Among his best January outings are a Jan. 13 Spurs win against the Los Angeles Lakers (23 points, 10-for-16 shooting, four rebounds and two steals) and the final game of the month, a Jan. 31 home win against the Milwaukee Bucks (20 points, 3-for-6 from the 3-point line, eight rebounds and six assists).
Last week, Castle was also selected to play in the Rising Stars Challenge during NBA All-Star Weekend on Feb. 14.
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