Sixth Man of the Year: NBA 1st Half Awards

Reverse Jam: 1st-Half Sixth Man of the Year

Matthew Huang

Staff Writer

@Reverse_Jam

Throughout the next week, Reverse Jam will release a series of articles that will replicate the NBA's end-of-season awards at the end of the 1st half. In a long NBA season, a lot can change and it is important to recognize a player's or team's efforts thus far.

Picking the Sixth Man of the Year might be one of the most difficult award to decide upon. The criterion appears very simple - Choose the best bench player… Right? Past winners of the Sixth Man of the Year Award (6MOY) tend to be the highest bench scorer. Well yes - and no.  Historically speaking, the award tends to be given to the most useful, most vital reserve player on a contending team.  The 6MOY comes off the bench and has to establish himself amongst the starters who have already set a tempo and feel of the game.  He has to perform at a level comparable to that of the starters, yet receive less recognition.  The 6MOY has to figure out the game the starters left him with in time to lead the bench unit towards the end of the rotation.  In short, the 6MOY is the link between two halves of the same team.  While your starting lineup can win the first rotation, the Sixth Man and the bench have to be able to hold that lead until the starters return, making their job extremely difficult.  Given this observation, it only makes sense that each team’s Sixth Man should be: 1) Someone who can be placed into the game at anytime and find rhythm and 2) A natural leader that can run the offense and facilitate the bench unit.  It is with this knowledge that out of all the great bench players in the league, one outstanding reserve player can be selected as the winner of this 1st-Half Sixth Man of the Year - and that is Eric Gordon

Eric Gordon is putting up a very impressive stat-line thus far, averaging 17.4/2.7/2.8 on .392/.421/.850.  It is important to note that Gordon is playing 30.5 min/gm and sinking 3.6 threes a game on a league 2nd-most 9.6 attempts (Second only to that one guy in Oakland). While having a bench player consistently take 10 threes a game seems counter-intuitive, that is Gordon’s role; which will bring me to my first point about the position in that, the 6MOY is awarded to the most useful player - relative to his team.

Eric Gordon’s role on the Rockets

The Rockets bench players play an average of 17 minutes/gm, which is extremely low, 25th in the NBA in fact; and while their average minutes/gm may be very low, they are extremely explosive, scoring 38.2 ppg, which is 8th-best in the league.  The low minutes played by the reserve suggests that the bench’s main job in this system is to give the starters a quick rest towards the end of the rotation.  However, the high scoring totals suggest something else entirely.  While they may not play much, the Rockets reserve players are expected to come in and be extremely effective almost instantaneously.  This ‘instant-offense’ philosophy the Rockets utilize is D’antoni’s brand of basketball, and the Rockets bench clearly reflects that, just with less minutes.  As discussed earlier in this Reverse Jam article, the Rockets rely on a very quick, guard-heavy offense that takes an obscene amount of shots beyond the arc.  The bench’s offensive potency despite their low usage can be traced to their (league 3rd-best) 4.4 threes made a game and their (league 2nd-best) field goal percentage of 47.4.  While the Rockets’ bench is extremely explosive, averaging 38 points in 17 minutes, and is extremely efficient, 47.4% FG - the Rockets play a shallow ten-man rotation.  The Rockets bench doesn't go very deep, but the players who do see the court are integral in the team's success.

While Eric Gordon may come off the bench, he spends more minutes on the court than starters Ryan Anderson and Clint Capela.  D’antoni has expertly crafted the rotation so that Gordon, who is more than capable of starting on an NBA team, is beautifully weaved into playing time with both Harden & Friends and the reserve players.  Gordon’s 30 minutes a game is comparable to that of a starter, and so is his production.  Referencing earlier discussed points, the Rockets bench makes the 3rd-most threes in the league, but it is also important to add that Eric Gordon himself takes 9.2 threes a game. If you’ve been keeping tally of all the stats, you will quickly see how vital Eric Gordon is to the Rocket’s bench as he accounts for 73.6% of the bench’s three’s taken, 81.8% of the bench's made threes, and additionally, accounts for 23.17% of the entire team’s threes taken.  The Rockets’ identity as a 3pt shooting team has been elevated to new heights this season evident in the fact that the Rockets have risen two spots up the league leaderboards in terms of 3-pointers made, due largely to Gordon's efforts.

Concluding, while having a player start 8 games in the 1st half of the season, play more than 2 starters and average 30 minutes per game does not suggest that he would be eligible for the Sixth Man of the Year award, D'antoni intended to strategically bring Gordon off the bench in a guard-heavy rotation to strategically take advantage of opposing team's weaker rotations. D’antoni and Harden came to the conclusion that bringing an additional playmaker and wing scorer would not only be extremely beneficial in sharing the load Harden carries, but vital in the Rocket's success.  Gordon’s salary of $12.4M may seem like an exorbitant price tag for a Sixth Man, but look at it this way: given D’antoni’s quick, shooting philosophy and the rotation they currently utilize to meet that philosophy - Eric Gordon is the perfect Sixth Man to compliment the likes of Harden and starters, as well as a great leader for the bench unit.  While the bench sees little daylight, when they are subbed in, Eric Gordon ensures that the offense is flowing and producing while buying the starters much needed rest.  D’antoni may have finally found the perfect team to implement his philosophy as well as the perfect Sixth Man.  With a ceiling as high as the NBA Finals, only time will tell if the Rockets can maintain their current course but as it stands now: they’re playing a great brand of basketball, are in a great system and have great leadership due, in part, to the 1st-Half Sixth Man of the Year: Eric Gordon.