Dario Saric on Monday was named NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for the second straight month. Buddy Hield of the Kings earned the Western Conference honors.
Saric averaged 18.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 31.7 minutes over 17 games in March. He scored 20-plus points in seven of those games and scored in double-figures 15 times.
On March 24, Saric scored a career-high 32 points in the Sixers' win over the Bulls. That was part of a 22-game double-digit streak. Clarence Weatherspoon (41 games) and Allen Iverson (32 games, 26 games) are the only other Sixers rookies with a stretch that long.
The Sixers, to this point, have a sweep of Rookie of the Month honors. Joel Embiid won in October/November, December and January. After he was sidelined, Saric picked up the award in February and March. The Sixers are the first NBA team with two players winning the award more than once in the same season.
Saric has taken over from Embiid as frontrunner for Rookie of the Year. According to Bovada, he has 5/12 odds to win (see story).
Embiid even gave Saric an on-air endorsement for the award.
