2022-23 NBA Midseason Awards Media Poll: Sixth Man of the Year
With just over six weeks left in the 2022-23 NBA regular season, not only will the race for who will and who will not make the playoffs heat up, but so will the race for this season’s awards.
Will Nikola Jokic be dethroned as the back-to-back recipient of the Most Valuable Player award? Is the race for the Most Improved Player award a two-man race between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lauri Markanen? With all the great teams this season, who will ultimately be named the league’s Coach of the Year?
Fastbreak on FanNation polled 25 different NBA media members, some who cover the league as a whole and some who cover an individual team, asking them these specific questions and gathering their results.
Below are the results from the voting that took place for the 2022-23 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award at the All-Star break:
Media Members Pick To Win 2022-23 NBA Sixth Man of the Year:
Malcolm Brogdon - Boston Celtics (16 votes)
Since the very start of the season, the Boston Celtics have been the best team in the NBA and that has remained true through the All-Star break. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown deserve a ton of credit and respect for this, as they have both been having All-NBA-like seasons, but the front-office led by Brad Stevens deserves a ton of credit as well for the addition of Malcolm Brogdon in the offseason.
While he was utilized off-the-bench early on in his career with the Milwaukee Bucks, Brogdon started in all 146 games he played in the last three seasons with the Indiana Pacers. Coming over to the Celtics this past offseason, many questioned how Brogdon would fit in, but the veteran guard embraced his role on this team and his unselfishness has greatly aided Boston’s championship efforts.
In 50 games this season, none of which Brogdon has started in, the former 2016-17 NBA Rookie of the Year has averaged 14.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game while shooting 48.2 percent from the floor and a league-high 45.5 percent from three-point range.
Very few players in the league are able to and willing to change their role from being “the guy” for their team to coming off-the-bench and leading the second-unit, but that is exactly what Malcolm Brogdon has done in Boston and for him to be shooting at the rate he is from three-point range is just simply remarkable.
To still be a leader and not be concerned about coming off-the-bench embodies what it means to be a “sixth man” in this league, which is why Brogdon is very deserving of this award and will undoubtedly be the recipient of it as long as he remains healthy through the end of the regular season.
Another former starter that has embraced his role off-the-bench with his team is Norman Powell with the Los Angeles Clippers. Powell received five votes for the Sixth Man of the Year award in the poll above and he has been having one of his most efficient seasons of his now eight year career, averaging 17.0 points and 3.1 rebounds per game while shooting 41.7 percent from three-point range.
Since joining the Clippers last season, Powell has shot 42.9 percent from the perimeter and his playmaking abilities off-the-bench out on the wing have been vital to the success of the Clippers, especially since Paul George and Kawhi Leonard have not played in every single game.
Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia 76ers), Jordan Poole (Golden State Warriors), Larry Nance Jr. (New Orleans Pelicans) and Russell Westbrook (Los Angeles Lakers/Clippers) have also made an impact in their bench roles this season.
Starting in 35 of the 58 games he has played in this season, Jordan Poole likely won’t be in consideration for this award anymore, but his production on the offensive-end of the floor is vital to the success of the Golden State Warriors.
As for Russell Westbrook, he was considered a favorite for this award for a while when he was with the Los Angeles Lakers, but after being traded and then bought out of his contract, he is now a member of the Los Angeles Clippers.
How Westbrook finishes the season and what his role will look like alongside Leonard and George is unknown at this time, which is why he will likely fall out of contention for this award as well.
Malcolm Brogdon has been the best leader, most consistent, most productive player off-the-bench this NBA season, which is why he will most likely become the first player in league history to win both the Rookie of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year awards in his career.
