Was Nuggets' Tim Hardaway Jr. Overlooked for Sixth Man of the Year?

The Denver Nuggets' bench spark plug came up short of this year's Sixth Man award. But was it warranted?

Apr 6, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Tim Hardaway Jr. (10) on the bench in the fourth quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Leading up to the Denver Nuggets' Game 3 matchup in their first round series vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves, it was announced that guard Tim Hardaway Jr. was not the lucky name selected to win this year's Sixth Man of the Year award.

Despite being named one of three finalists for the honors, it would instead be San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson to take home the award after being a critical part of their two-seeded finish in the West.

San Antonio Spurs' Keldon Johnson has won the 2025-26 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 22, 2026

It's the fourth time in Hardaway Jr.'s career that he's been ranked top 10 in voting for Sixth Man of the Year, but this year was unquestionably his best chance of taking the award home.

But yet again, he would be left coming up short in what was his most productive season in at least five years. And with the results of the votes now finalized, it presents one big question: was Tim Hardaway Jr. snubbed from winning his first Sixth Man award?

Was Tim Hardaway Jr. Snubbed of 6MOTY?

With the way this year's Sixth Man of the Year voting came out, Johnson seemed to have the right votes in place to take home the award in pretty convincing fashion.

And it's easy to see why. He averaged over 13 points per game and five rebounds shooting over 51% from the field for one of the best teams in the Western Conference, and doing it all on a team that was a better force on both ends of the floor.

That's an appealing Sixth Man case for any player. But even with the type of season Johnson had, Hardaway Jr. was certainly worth more consideration than what the consensus ended up adding up to.

Feb 1, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Tim Hardaway Jr. (10) reacts in the third quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Here's a stat: only three players this season averaged over 10 points with two threes made per game (min. 100 attempts) and shot over 40% from deep while doing so: Tim Hardaway Jr., Bobby Portis, and Malik Monk.

One of those players is one of the most impactful bench pieces on a team that is a top contender in the West. The other two are on a pair of teams that nosedived for the lottery in the second half of the regular season.

Here's another stat: only three players in Nuggets history has surpassed 200 threes in a single season.

One is Michael Porter Jr. (220), who held the franchise record for single-season threes across two seasons, Jamal Murray (245), who broke that record just this season, and Hardaway Jr (224)., who would've broken Porter's record this season if it weren’t for his teammate having an All-NBA caliber season.

There have been two different sets of teammates in NBA history to make 220+ threes each on 40% or better shooting in the same season:

Klay Thompson & Steph Curry (six times)

Jamal Murray & Tim Hardaway Jr. (2025-26) pic.twitter.com/RIKqVm2PQT

— Jake Coyne (@TheStatSquatch) April 14, 2026

More importantly, Hardaway did all of that while coming off the bench for most of the season. The other two were starting-level pieces for their respective rosters, and Hardaway played less than 400 minutes than each.

The point being, Hardaway was a sniper of historic, league-best proportions this year, and did so on the team that's been statistically the NBA's best offense and most efficient three-point shooting team in the regular season (39.6 3PT%), a large part of which has been possible due to Hardaway's durability and consistency.

Bottom Line

For an offensive spark plug and "sixth man", it's hard to find many better in the league this season than Hardaway.

He was consistent, impactful, and helped keep a winning team afloat all season while suffering a boatload of injuries from what at times felt like it spanned from the start to finish of their 82-game calendar.

Instead, though, it's Johnson being the one who takes the Sixth Man crown. And while it's certainly not undeserved for the Spurs' forward, it does sting for the Nuggets veteran to walk away from this season empty-handed for what was one of the best seasons from a bench player in franchise history.

Sign up for our free Denver Nuggets On SI newsletter, and get breaking Nuggets news delivered to your inbox daily!