Early NBA Sixth Man of the Year Prediction
It shouldn’t take much to convince anyone who watched last night’s big win against the Indiana Pacers that Lou Williams is a strong candidate for this season’s NBA Sixth Man of the Year. Last night, Williams contributed 26 points, four rebounds and three assists. That’s spectacular for a bench player, but it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, considering Williams’ track record.
Williams has been in the Sixth Man of the Year conversation before, coming second in voting in 2012. That season, he averaged 14.9 points per game. This campaign, he is at 14.4 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game, and his numbers have only been rising recently. He has fit right into Toronto in his first season as a Raptor, contributing handily to the team’s impressive 17-6 record. Let’s compare Williams’ performance so far this season to that of his competition for the bench-unit award.
Isaiah Thomas, Phoenix Suns
Thomas finally came back last night, after missing eight games with an ankle injury. Though he has only played 16 games this season, the guard is still fixedly in the hunt for the Sixth Man award. Thomas fits the mould for a successful sixth man: explosive, high energy, capable of pulling his team back from just about any deficit. Thomas is averaging 15.1 points and four rebounds per game. Thomas has slightly higher numbers than Williams, but my guess is that by the time DeMar DeRozan returns from his injury, Williams’ will be higher. He is getting more minutes than before, and making the most of his time. One positive consideration for Williams is that he is playing on a better team, comparatively to its division, than Thomas is. The Sixth Man of the Year typical comes from a successful team, so Williams seems to have the leg up.
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Jamal Crawford, Los Angeles Clippers
A two-time recipient of the award, Crawford should never be left out of the conversation. This season, Crawford has continued his pattern of excellence, helping the deadly Clippers cruise to a 16-6 record. Crawford is averaging 16.5 points, three rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. On stats alone, he easily has Williams beat. Crawford is a savvy veteran, who just plain understands how to thrive off the bench. That said, Crawford likely won’t win this year if his numbers continue to be considerably lower than they were last year, when he won. Last season, he scored 18.6 points per game. For that reason alone, Crawford isn’t the current front runner.
Ryan Anderson, New Orleans Pelicans
Ryan Anderson is probably Williams’ biggest competition right now. Anderson is playing really well, and winning the award is the least the NBA can do for someone who has gone through so much recently. Don’t get this wrong, he deserves consideration for the award on the merit of his play alone. Anderson is putting up 15 points and 5.3 rebounds per game off the bench. As a power forward, it’s hard to compare Anderson is Williams, but I think both are playing well. Williams’ Raptors are obviously better than Anderson’s 11-11 Pelicans, which should work in his favour. That being said, Williams has predominantly been simply a scorer this season, whereas Anderson has put up numbers in the rebounding column as well.
The NBA season is still young, so there’s only so much that can be predicted. What is known right now is that the race is close. If Williams keeps playing like he has been, he has a definite chance.