Blazers News: Surprise Portland Star a Finalist for Major Midseason Honor

Ricardo Klein

Nov 3, 2023; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers small forward Jerami Grant (9) celebrates a three-point shot with teammate Shaedon Sharpe (17) during overtime against the Memphis Grizzlies at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-Imagn Images
Nov 3, 2023; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers small forward Jerami Grant (9) celebrates a three-point shot with teammate Shaedon Sharpe (17) during overtime against the Memphis Grizzlies at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-Imagn Images / Soobum Im-Imagn Images
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Portland Trail Blazers star guard Shaedon Sharpe was named a finalist for the Western Conference Player of the Month award.

Sharpe was among 11 other finalists for the award.

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was named the Kia NBA Western Conference Player of the Month.

Sharpe was stellar in the first month of the season, recording 18.0 points per game, 3.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and shot 43 percent from the field and 28 percent from three.

Sharpe was coming off one of his most stellar performances this early in the season on Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks. He recorded 22 points on 10-for-20 shooting from the field and 2-for-6 shooting from three, along with four rebounds, three assists, and two steals in 37 minutes.

Sharpe delivered an impressive stat line and made his presence felt in other areas outside of scoring. The organization believes he is one of the long-term building blocks of the Blazers roster.

Sharpe has scored in double digits in each of the last 10 appearances, averaging 20.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game in that span.

The Blazers drafted the 21-year-old in the 2022 NBA Draft with the No. 7 overall pick in the first round. Prior to his time in the NBA, he graduated early from high school with the intention of redshirting his first year at Kentucky and playing in the 2022–23 season.

However, prior to the start of the 2021-22 season, then Kentucky head coach John Calipari announced that Sharpe would not play for the team that season after speculation that he would play and enter the 2022 NBA Draft, for which he was eligible.

In late April 2022, Sharpe declared for the 2022 draft, foregoing his remaining college eligibility without playing a game.

Sharpe is a native of London, Ontario, in Canada. He became a consensus five-star recruit and was previously the consensus number one player in the 2022 class before reclassifying.

Sharpe was unranked by major recruiting services early in his high school career and became one of the top players in his class in about one year, in part due to his success at the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League in 2021.

He chose Kentucky over Arizona, Kansas, Oklahoma State, and the NBA G League Ignite. He was the first number-one recruit to commit to the program since Nerlens Noel in 2012.

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Ricardo Klein
RICARDO KLEIN

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