The 21-year-old Philadelphia 76ers point guard Simmons averaged 18.5 points, 10 rebounds, and 8.8 assists in his team’s four wins last week to secure the Eastern Conference award and further make his case for Rookie of the Year honours.

Denver Nuggets centre Jokić narrowly missed averaging a triple-double en route to the Western Conference honour, averaging 23 points, 10.3 rebounds, and nine assists as his team went 3-0 to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Simmons, who sat out all of last season with a broken foot, has played a key role for the overachieving 76ers, who have won 14 straight matches and sit third in the conference with two games left to play in the regular season.

Yet the ambitious Australian said on Monday he had his eyes on an even bigger prize than the Player of the Week or even Rookie of the Year honours.

“Championships,” Simmons said. “I want to be the Defensive Player of the Year… MVP. There’s a lot of accolades I want to get, but I ultimately want to win a ring.”

It is the second time the 23-year-old Jokić has won the award this season after also having done so in the week ending on November 12.

Monday marks the first time two foreign players have won the awards in the same week since Montenegro’s Nikola Vučević won it for the Eastern Conference’s Orlando Magic and the United States Virgin Islands’ Tim Duncan for the Western Conference’s San Antonio Spurs during the 2013-2014 season.

The awards are the latest sign of the impact players from outside the US are having on the league. A record number of foreign players are expected to compete in the playoffs when they tip off on April 14.