• Sixth Man of the Year 2025-26 โ€” the top three and why one stands out

    The top three Sixth Man of the Year candidates going into the final stretch: Cleveland's bench scorer who is averaging 19-5-4 off the bench and has the most impactful plus-minus of any reserve player. Dallas' instant offense forward who provides position-less spacing and scoring, though his defensive metrics hurt the case. Oklahoma City's depth guard who may be the most important bench player in basketball relative to his team's success โ€” OKC's bench unit goes from average to below average without him specifically. My vote: Cleveland, because impact and efficiency simultaneously is the right benchmark, and he checks both.

  • The top three Sixth Man of the Year candidates going into the final stretch: Cleveland's bench scorer who is averaging 19-5-4 off the bench and has the most impactful plus-minus of any reserve player. Dallas' instant offense forward who provides position-less spacing and scoring, though his defensive metrics hurt the case. Oklahoma City's depth guard who may be the most important bench player in basketball relative to his team's success โ€” OKC's bench unit goes from average to below average without him specifically. My vote: Cleveland, because impact and efficiency simultaneously is the right benchmark, and he checks both.