NEWSLETTER
The NBA – a league that contains roughly 500 players – gives out six awards at the end of the season. So while the Sixth Man of the Year trophy may not be the granddaddy of them all, seeing your name engraved on it is a pretty big deal, and Jordan Clarkson acted like it when surprised with the honor last night.
https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1396973627887611910?s=20
• First things first, props to TNT for a fun reveal. I’m still in favor of announcing these awards in front of sold-out home crowds, but I’ll gladly settle for fun surprises like this. Secondly, props to Joe Ingles for an awesome acting job, who finished in second place behind his Utah teammate (wait … a team can have two sixth men?). It’s so fun to see someone get some big-time acknowledgment for their hard work, and it’s even more fun to see that acknowledgment come from the guy who lost.
• With all that said, neither Clarkson nor Ingles nor Derrick Rose (*gasp*) should have taken the crown. We all know the real Sixth Man of the Year stands six-foot-eight at the prime age of 32-years-old with one of the best nicknames in the game: Thadgic “Definitely the True Sixth Man of the Year” Johnson.
Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson has won the 2020-21 Kia NBA Sixth Man Award for his contributions in a reserve role, the NBA announced today.
More: https://t.co/flsURdRXSG
Full voting results below ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/XseKPioryG
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 24, 2021
• Fine, I’m kidding. But Young did receive two 3rd-place votes for the award! The big man finished the season with one of the best campaigns of his 14-year career, averaging 12.1 points, 4.3 assists (career-high), 6.2 rebounds, and 1.0 steal per game. His 56.7 percent effective field goal percentage was also a career-high. I’m honestly a tiny bit surprised he didn’t receive a little bit more recognition in the final vote tally, but the Bulls’ lack of success mixed with the fact that he ended up starting 23 games probably pushed him down the list. If we are talking about the sheer impact on winning, though, Young was easily one of the league’s top off-the-bench contributors. His On/Off differential finished at a +10.7, which ranked in the 97th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass. FWIW: Clarkson finished with a -7.3 differential and Ingles with a +2.0. Rose, the third-place finisher, had a +10.6 during his 35 games with New York. Again, I totally understand why Young found himself practically off the ballot, but he was one of the most coveted trade deadline names for a reason.
• Also, let’s be honest, this dunk should have won Young the award immediately.
https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1390482882385391619?s=20
• This was taken seconds before Jordan emptied all of their pockets.
— 90s NBA (@NBA90s) May 25, 2021
• I do wonder what my plane or bus ride activity would be. As much as I enjoy reading and writing, I don’t think I’d be the loner in the backseat minding my own business. I would definitely opt for playing some kind of game with the #Bros, but I’m not a huge gambler (maybe that reluctance would disappear with an NBA salary in my pocket). So how about a good old fashion board game? We can whip out some Monopoly, Life, Settlers of Catan, or Scrabble. Sure, we might hit some unexpected turbulence and the pieces fly everywhere, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take for good vibes! I’d also definitely recommend some Mario Kart to my teammates. I would make the rookies lug around an old box TV and a GameCube so I kick everyone’s ass on the daily.
• DRose and Thibs get a lot of attention, but Taj has repeatedly carved himself out an important role over the years. It’s been awesome to see.
https://twitter.com/JCrossover/status/1396625480636198913?s=20
That Gibson-to-Rose assist last night got me thinking.
Taj has now assisted on a Rose bucket in the playoffs for 3 different teams, all with the same coach (Thibs).
— Jeff Mangurten (@JeffGurt) May 24, 2021
• Speaking of carving out a role, Shaq Harrison is still putting in work.
Pretty awesome sequence from Shaq Harrison. Screen assist for Jokic, force the ball out of Dame's hands, deny a pass back to him and secures the rebound after a miss: pic.twitter.com/xeCOsuxe1X
— Jackson Frank (@jackfrank_jjf) May 25, 2021
• It’s a rare day in Bulls history when Jordan doesn’t have the top highlights.
https://twitter.com/NBATV/status/1397160519887249415?s=20
https://twitter.com/NBATV/status/1397190726018998272?s=20
