5 Best Candidates for 2012 NBA 6th Man of the Year
With the NBA season now two-thirds of the way through and heading down to the final stretch, it's time to start zeroing in on the various awards and who is still in contention for them. The Sixth Many of the Year goes to the league's most valuable player who comes off the bench.
Here are the top five players to consider for the award.
5. Jason Terry
Jason "the Jett" Terry is a previous award winner. He received it in 2009. This year he's averaging 17.9 points per 36 minutes off the bench and has a player efficiency rating of 15.4
Where Terry earns his way onto this list is his clutch time production. Defining "clutch" as five or fewer minutes in the game and the score within five points, Terry's field-goal percentage, three-point percentage and scoring all go up in the clutch. When the game is on the line Terry averages 25.3 points per game and is the clear "Robin" to Dirk Nowitzki's "Batman."
4. Taj Gibson
While the award has traditionally gone to a player who helps his team offensively, Gibson's length and energy off the bench characterize the Bulls in both regards, and those are two of the reasons the Bulls keep winning even though they've had so many injury issues.
While posting a respectable player PER of 17.3 (third of players on this list) and has per 36 minute stats of 14.1 points and 9.1 rebounds, Gibson's real value is his defense. Gibson's defensive Synergy numbers (.73 points per play overall, 0.5 in isolation) are on par with the elite defensive power forwards in the league (Tim Duncan is .72 overall and .86 in isolation). The Bulls give up 11.1 fewer points per 100 possessions while Gibson is on the court.
3. Al Harringtton
Harrington has been below the radar this year. Only two players (Lou Williams and James Harden) have scored more points off the bench than Harrington, and only one (Udonis Haslem) has grabbed more rebounds.
Harrington is scoring 18.6 points and grabbing 8.3 rebounds per 36 minutes, and his PER is 15.3. While Harrington is on the bench, the Nuggets are outscored by 1.7 points per 100 possessions. While he is on the court, they outscore their opponents by 5.8 points. That's a pretty striking net difference of 7.5 points.
2. Lou Williams
Williams is the leading scorer for the Philadelphia 76ers, averaging 15.7 points per game. His per 36 numbers are an impressive 21.4 points and 4.9 assists per game. His PER is 20.9.
On a team that lacks a "go-to" scorer when the game is on the line, Williams is as close as they get. He leads the team with 27.6 points per 36 minutes of clutch time play. While Williams is second here, he's a narrow second, and it's not impossible for him to take over the top spot before the season is over.
1. James Harden
Right now, it's hard to make a case for anyone other than Harden as the Sixth Man of the Year. First, he has an absolutely rocking beard, which, for all we know, has it's own ecosystem. That gives him the benefit of the doubt.
Harden has easily been the third best player, and you could even make an argument for the second best, on the Oklahoma City Thunder. Harden is averaging 17.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game—19.3 points, 4.2 assists and 4.7 rebounds per 36 minutes. He has a PER of 21.1, best of any sixth-man candidate.
