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Every NBA season there's a certain amount of lobbying by organizations for their guys to win awards. That lobbying is getting started for the Sixth Man Award, as coach Tom Thibodeau of the Chicago Bulls recently made the case for his guy, Taj Gibson. Doc Rivers of the Los Angeles Clippers came back with a comment endorsing his guy, Jamal Crawford.
Doc said he "certainly" thinks @JCrossover should win 6th Man of the Year. "He's just been fantastic"
— Los Angeles Clippers (@LAClippers) April 6, 2014
(Coincidentally, Thibodeau was an assistant under Rivers in Boston and the two are close friends.)
A little over a month ago I made the case for Crawford, saying that the only real obstacle between him and the award was the eligibility requirement concerning starting fewer than half of the games in which he appears. At the time Crawford was healthy and in the starting lineup for the injured J.J. Redick, but Jamal has dealt with his own injury issues since and has come off the bench when he has played, and several weeks ago he assured his eligibility. The bigger issue now might simply be the injury itself -- will missing so much time, particularly at the end of the season when awards are on the minds of voters, hurt his chances?
In trying to be as objective and thorough as possible, I decided to go through all of the reasonable candidates for the award this season. Beginning with the assumption that a Sixth Man Award winner would have to at least get on the floor a lot, I began with all of the the eligible players (i.e. they have started fewer than half of the games in which they have appeared) who have played at least 1,000 minutes this season. That gave me a list of 95 players.
Next I eliminated all of the players from teams with losing records; as I explained last time, no Sixth Man Award winner has ever come from a team with a losing record, and the emphasis on team success is certainly not a trend that is abating. Narrowing the search to just the reserves on teams with winning records yields 43 candidates.
What next? If you look at the history of the Sixth Man Award, there's one statistic that stands out as being the most important: scoring. Nine of the last 12 Sixth Man winners were the top scoring reserves in the league the year they won. All 12 of them were among the top three in scoring, and within a point or two of the leader's average. So in most cases, you don't have to look beyond simple points per game. In fact, J.R. Smith won the award last season despite being far less efficient as a scorer than Crawford while also scoring fewer points per minute. In real estate it's location, location and location. In Sixth Man voting, it's scoring, scoring and scoring. Or at least it always has been.
|
Per 36 |
Per Game |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Player |
Tm |
G |
GS |
MP |
FG |
FGA |
3P |
3PA |
FT |
FTA |
ORB |
DRB |
TRB |
AST |
STL |
BLK |
TOV |
PTS |
FG% |
2P% |
3P% |
FT% |
TS% |
PTS |
MP |
PER |
|
66 |
23 |
2003 |
7.3 |
17.4 |
2.8 |
7.7 |
4.7 |
5.5 |
0.6 |
2.1 |
2.7 |
3.8 |
1.0 |
0.2 |
2.3 |
22.1 |
0.42 |
0.46 |
0.36 |
0.86 |
0.56 |
18.6 |
30.3 |
17.4 |
||
|
76 |
0 |
2009 |
6.8 |
14.0 |
0.6 |
1.9 |
4.5 |
5.6 |
2.4 |
5.8 |
8.2 |
2.4 |
1.2 |
0.8 |
2.5 |
18.7 |
0.49 |
0.51 |
0.32 |
0.79 |
0.57 |
13.7 |
26.4 |
18.5 |
||
|
74 |
34 |
2137 |
6.4 |
14.6 |
1.3 |
3.8 |
2.5 |
2.8 |
0.7 |
4.3 |
5.0 |
5.2 |
1.4 |
0.1 |
2.7 |
16.6 |
0.44 |
0.48 |
0.33 |
0.90 |
0.53 |
13.3 |
28.9 |
15.3 |
||
|
77 |
8 |
2216 |
6.6 |
13.7 |
0.0 |
0.1 |
3.2 |
4.3 |
3.1 |
5.6 |
8.6 |
1.4 |
0.6 |
1.7 |
2.2 |
16.5 |
0.48 |
0.49 |
0.00 |
0.75 |
0.53 |
13.2 |
28.8 |
16.4 |
||
|
TOT |
67 |
9 |
1815 |
5.4 |
13.1 |
2.4 |
6.0 |
3.7 |
4.1 |
0.3 |
2.1 |
2.4 |
6.0 |
1.0 |
0.1 |
2.2 |
17.0 |
0.42 |
0.42 |
0.41 |
0.89 |
0.57 |
12.8 |
27.1 |
16.4 |
|
|
66 |
30 |
1930 |
5.1 |
11.5 |
1.3 |
4.0 |
3.8 |
4.7 |
0.6 |
2.7 |
3.2 |
5.2 |
1.1 |
0.5 |
3.1 |
15.4 |
0.44 |
0.50 |
0.34 |
0.82 |
0.57 |
12.5 |
29.2 |
14.1 |
||
|
64 |
3 |
1462 |
6.9 |
14.6 |
2.1 |
6.0 |
3.9 |
4.5 |
0.7 |
4.0 |
4.8 |
6.8 |
1.6 |
0.4 |
3.2 |
19.7 |
0.47 |
0.56 |
0.35 |
0.85 |
0.60 |
12.5 |
22.8 |
20.6 |
||
|
77 |
0 |
1876 |
6.0 |
14.8 |
2.7 |
6.8 |
3.1 |
3.7 |
1.3 |
3.9 |
5.2 |
3.9 |
1.1 |
0.7 |
2.0 |
17.8 |
0.41 |
0.42 |
0.40 |
0.83 |
0.54 |
12.1 |
24.4 |
16.3 |
||
|
76 |
24 |
1909 |
6.1 |
12.4 |
2.3 |
5.2 |
1.9 |
2.2 |
0.3 |
3.8 |
4.1 |
3.3 |
0.9 |
0.1 |
1.7 |
16.4 |
0.49 |
0.53 |
0.44 |
0.85 |
0.61 |
11.5 |
25.1 |
15.4 |
||
|
76 |
34 |
1956 |
5.7 |
12.1 |
1.3 |
3.3 |
3.3 |
3.9 |
0.8 |
2.4 |
3.1 |
5.1 |
1.7 |
0.3 |
2.3 |
16.0 |
0.47 |
0.50 |
0.39 |
0.85 |
0.58 |
11.4 |
25.7 |
16.4 |
||
|
70 |
6 |
1553 |
7.2 |
15.0 |
0.3 |
1.1 |
3.7 |
5.0 |
2.7 |
5.9 |
8.6 |
2.5 |
1.6 |
0.9 |
2.3 |
18.3 |
0.48 |
0.49 |
0.27 |
0.74 |
0.53 |
11.3 |
22.2 |
19.0 |
||
|
TOT |
76 |
35 |
1773 |
6.1 |
14.9 |
1.7 |
5.4 |
2.8 |
3.3 |
0.5 |
3.0 |
3.5 |
5.6 |
0.9 |
0.1 |
2.6 |
16.8 |
0.41 |
0.46 |
0.32 |
0.86 |
0.51 |
10.9 |
23.3 |
14.2 |
|
|
77 |
1 |
1428 |
7.3 |
15.6 |
3.2 |
7.5 |
1.7 |
2.0 |
0.9 |
3.2 |
4.1 |
3.5 |
1.7 |
0.2 |
1.5 |
19.5 |
0.47 |
0.52 |
0.42 |
0.89 |
0.59 |
10.1 |
18.5 |
19.1 |
||
|
73 |
13 |
2054 |
4.3 |
9.9 |
2.5 |
6.2 |
1.7 |
2.0 |
0.6 |
3.0 |
3.7 |
1.6 |
0.7 |
0.3 |
1.0 |
12.8 |
0.44 |
0.51 |
0.40 |
0.85 |
0.60 |
10.0 |
28.1 |
11.8 |
||
|
77 |
1 |
1695 |
5.8 |
13.0 |
2.0 |
5.3 |
2.4 |
3.2 |
1.7 |
4.8 |
6.5 |
1.8 |
1.4 |
0.4 |
1.9 |
16.1 |
0.45 |
0.49 |
0.38 |
0.77 |
0.56 |
9.8 |
22.0 |
15.2 |
||
|
67 |
9 |
1792 |
4.5 |
10.2 |
2.1 |
5.7 |
2.0 |
2.1 |
0.4 |
3.4 |
3.9 |
2.7 |
1.0 |
0.1 |
1.6 |
13.1 |
0.44 |
0.53 |
0.37 |
0.92 |
0.59 |
9.7 |
26.7 |
12.8 |
||
|
72 |
0 |
1789 |
5.5 |
13.2 |
1.6 |
4.4 |
1.5 |
1.7 |
0.8 |
2.2 |
3.0 |
6.3 |
1.1 |
0.2 |
2.9 |
14.1 |
0.41 |
0.44 |
0.37 |
0.88 |
0.50 |
9.7 |
24.8 |
11.8 |
||
|
73 |
21 |
2051 |
4.3 |
11.0 |
1.1 |
3.1 |
2.2 |
2.9 |
1.0 |
3.9 |
4.9 |
1.8 |
1.0 |
0.3 |
1.4 |
11.9 |
0.39 |
0.41 |
0.35 |
0.74 |
0.48 |
9.3 |
28.1 |
9.5 |
||
|
74 |
23 |
1856 |
5.6 |
10.4 |
0.8 |
2.1 |
1.3 |
1.7 |
1.3 |
4.5 |
5.8 |
3.9 |
0.8 |
0.6 |
2.2 |
13.2 |
0.53 |
0.57 |
0.39 |
0.73 |
0.59 |
9.2 |
25.1 |
14.3 |
||
|
TOT |
67 |
7 |
1373 |
5.6 |
13.6 |
2.4 |
5.9 |
1.9 |
2.2 |
1.0 |
2.2 |
3.3 |
5.3 |
1.2 |
0.3 |
2.7 |
15.4 |
0.41 |
0.42 |
0.40 |
0.86 |
0.53 |
8.8 |
20.5 |
13.3 |
|
|
75 |
0 |
1501 |
6.1 |
14.2 |
2.0 |
5.8 |
1.2 |
1.5 |
0.6 |
3.9 |
4.5 |
2.7 |
1.3 |
0.6 |
1.4 |
15.4 |
0.43 |
0.49 |
0.35 |
0.79 |
0.52 |
8.6 |
20.0 |
13.4 |
||
|
75 |
1 |
1396 |
6.4 |
16.2 |
1.9 |
5.7 |
2.0 |
2.5 |
0.4 |
3.4 |
3.8 |
7.3 |
0.6 |
0.0 |
3.0 |
16.6 |
0.39 |
0.43 |
0.33 |
0.78 |
0.48 |
8.6 |
18.6 |
12.2 |
||
|
68 |
6 |
1292 |
5.7 |
13.5 |
3.4 |
8.9 |
1.0 |
1.5 |
1.5 |
5.3 |
6.9 |
1.5 |
0.7 |
0.6 |
1.4 |
15.8 |
0.42 |
0.49 |
0.38 |
0.70 |
0.56 |
8.3 |
19.0 |
14.1 |
||
|
78 |
0 |
1310 |
6.5 |
14.2 |
0.0 |
0.2 |
2.6 |
3.6 |
2.1 |
7.9 |
10.1 |
2.0 |
0.7 |
0.4 |
2.7 |
15.7 |
0.46 |
0.46 |
0.14 |
0.72 |
0.50 |
7.3 |
16.8 |
12.7 |
||
|
76 |
25 |
1719 |
3.9 |
9.9 |
1.7 |
5.1 |
1.9 |
2.3 |
0.8 |
2.7 |
3.5 |
1.7 |
1.0 |
0.2 |
1.2 |
11.5 |
0.40 |
0.46 |
0.34 |
0.81 |
0.52 |
7.2 |
22.6 |
9.5 |
||
|
66 |
0 |
1185 |
4.9 |
11.6 |
1.8 |
5.1 |
2.4 |
3.6 |
1.6 |
5.5 |
7.1 |
2.5 |
1.3 |
0.4 |
2.0 |
14.0 |
0.43 |
0.48 |
0.36 |
0.67 |
0.53 |
7.0 |
18.0 |
13.3 |
||
|
77 |
4 |
1599 |
4.3 |
9.2 |
2.1 |
4.8 |
1.0 |
1.3 |
0.6 |
3.8 |
4.4 |
2.7 |
0.6 |
0.1 |
1.5 |
11.8 |
0.47 |
0.50 |
0.45 |
0.82 |
0.61 |
6.8 |
20.8 |
12.1 |
||
|
68 |
0 |
1334 |
4.7 |
7.1 |
0.1 |
0.3 |
3.1 |
4.4 |
3.4 |
6.3 |
9.7 |
0.5 |
0.9 |
2.5 |
1.3 |
12.5 |
0.66 |
0.68 |
0.25 |
0.71 |
0.69 |
6.8 |
19.6 |
19.0 |
||
|
64 |
21 |
1114 |
5.3 |
8.3 |
0.0 |
0.1 |
3.5 |
5.5 |
2.7 |
5.8 |
8.6 |
1.4 |
1.4 |
1.6 |
2.2 |
14.2 |
0.64 |
0.65 |
0.00 |
0.63 |
0.66 |
6.8 |
17.4 |
17.9 |
||
|
76 |
6 |
1871 |
3.8 |
9.0 |
1.1 |
3.2 |
1.0 |
1.3 |
0.3 |
2.6 |
2.9 |
4.3 |
1.3 |
0.1 |
2.3 |
9.7 |
0.42 |
0.45 |
0.35 |
0.78 |
0.50 |
6.6 |
24.6 |
8.9 |
||
|
76 |
22 |
1315 |
6.1 |
12.2 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
1.5 |
2.4 |
4.2 |
7.0 |
11.2 |
1.0 |
0.9 |
1.9 |
1.8 |
13.7 |
0.50 |
0.50 |
0.63 |
0.52 |
6.6 |
17.3 |
16.5 |
|||
|
75 |
13 |
1178 |
6.2 |
11.7 |
0.0 |
0.1 |
2.2 |
3.5 |
4.0 |
6.8 |
10.8 |
2.1 |
1.8 |
0.6 |
2.3 |
14.7 |
0.53 |
0.54 |
0.00 |
0.63 |
0.56 |
6.4 |
15.7 |
17.0 |
||
|
60 |
5 |
1132 |
4.3 |
10.0 |
1.4 |
4.3 |
2.0 |
2.5 |
0.6 |
2.4 |
3.1 |
3.3 |
1.7 |
0.3 |
1.7 |
12.0 |
0.43 |
0.49 |
0.34 |
0.79 |
0.54 |
6.3 |
18.9 |
12.5 |
||
|
77 |
10 |
1678 |
3.7 |
9.3 |
1.0 |
3.3 |
1.7 |
2.6 |
1.7 |
6.4 |
8.2 |
3.0 |
2.0 |
1.5 |
1.8 |
10.1 |
0.40 |
0.45 |
0.31 |
0.66 |
0.49 |
6.1 |
21.8 |
12.5 |
||
|
75 |
6 |
1502 |
5.1 |
11.0 |
0.0 |
0.1 |
0.7 |
1.2 |
2.5 |
4.8 |
7.3 |
1.8 |
1.3 |
1.3 |
1.0 |
10.9 |
0.46 |
0.47 |
0.00 |
0.56 |
0.47 |
6.1 |
20.0 |
12.2 |
||
|
51 |
4 |
1004 |
4.0 |
9.8 |
2.4 |
6.7 |
0.4 |
0.7 |
0.7 |
3.4 |
4.1 |
2.1 |
1.0 |
1.1 |
1.0 |
10.8 |
0.41 |
0.51 |
0.37 |
0.53 |
0.54 |
5.9 |
19.7 |
10.1 |
||
|
75 |
0 |
1312 |
3.6 |
9.1 |
2.3 |
5.8 |
1.4 |
1.8 |
0.3 |
2.8 |
3.1 |
2.9 |
1.8 |
0.1 |
1.3 |
11.0 |
0.40 |
0.41 |
0.40 |
0.78 |
0.56 |
5.4 |
17.5 |
10.4 |
||
|
66 |
7 |
1103 |
4.4 |
9.7 |
0.6 |
1.9 |
1.2 |
2.1 |
0.7 |
3.6 |
4.2 |
6.4 |
2.0 |
0.3 |
3.1 |
10.7 |
0.46 |
0.50 |
0.31 |
0.60 |
0.51 |
5.0 |
16.7 |
12.5 |
||
|
74 |
8 |
1219 |
3.8 |
8.6 |
1.5 |
4.4 |
1.4 |
1.8 |
1.3 |
4.3 |
5.6 |
1.7 |
1.7 |
0.6 |
1.2 |
10.5 |
0.45 |
0.56 |
0.34 |
0.75 |
0.56 |
4.8 |
16.5 |
12.1 |
||
|
71 |
12 |
1195 |
3.7 |
9.9 |
1.7 |
5.3 |
0.9 |
1.2 |
0.5 |
3.1 |
3.7 |
2.0 |
0.8 |
0.5 |
1.3 |
10.0 |
0.38 |
0.45 |
0.32 |
0.74 |
0.48 |
4.7 |
16.8 |
7.9 |
||
|
75 |
0 |
1268 |
3.6 |
6.4 |
0.1 |
0.4 |
1.8 |
2.5 |
3.1 |
4.7 |
7.7 |
2.6 |
0.8 |
0.8 |
1.8 |
9.1 |
0.56 |
0.58 |
0.27 |
0.72 |
0.61 |
4.3 |
16.9 |
11.9 |
||
|
74 |
0 |
1194 |
2.6 |
5.5 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
2.6 |
4.2 |
3.1 |
4.2 |
7.3 |
0.7 |
1.2 |
2.1 |
1.7 |
7.7 |
0.46 |
0.47 |
0.00 |
0.62 |
0.52 |
3.5 |
16.1 |
9.9 |
||
|
75 |
20 |
1115 |
2.8 |
5.7 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
2.3 |
3.9 |
4.4 |
5.8 |
10.2 |
1.4 |
1.2 |
1.7 |
2.3 |
7.9 |
0.49 |
0.49 |
0.58 |
0.53 |
3.3 |
14.9 |
10.9 |
|||
If the voters hold to form, Crawford will win in a landslide. He leads all reserves in scoring per game; he leads all reserves in scoring per 36 minutes. And when you consider just those eligible players on winning teams, it's not remotely close. Crawford is averaging 18.6 points per game; the next best scoring non-starter on a winning team is Markieff Morris of the Suns at 13.7, almost five full points fewer.
Gibson has been terrific for a surprising Bulls team this season. He's an excellent defender, as Thibodeau has pointed out. If Sixth Man voters suddenly decide that they care about defense, then there's a strong case to be made for Gibson, since Crawford's own defense leaves much to be desired. But guess what? Sixth Man voters aren't going to decide to care about defense this season.
Manu Ginobili is another great sixth man, but honestly, Patty Mills and Marco Belinelli have been almost as good -- the San Antonio system just seems to make everyone successful. Regardless, at 12.5 points per game, it's difficult to imagine many voters picking Ginobili over Crawford.
Markieff Morris has certainly been a major part of Phoenix's surprising success, and Reggie Jackson has put up some solid numbers in Oklahoma City, stepping into the starting lineup for Russell Westbrook while coming off the bench enough to remain eligible for the Sixth Man Award.
The more I look at the candidates, the more convinced I am that Crawford is going to win easily. Or let me put it another way: if he doesn't win, it will be unprecedented in the history of the award that such a prolific scorer would be overlooked. The one thing that is difficult to gauge would be the fact that if he does not play in the team's last four games, he will wind up missing 16 of their final 22, a factor that is difficult to evaluate. However, even if he doesn't play another minute, he will still finish the season as one of a dozen or so candidates from winning teams with more than 2,000 minutes played on the season, so the idea of discounting his candidacy for a late injury would be an overreaction.