6th Man of the Year: Montrezl Harrell, PF/C, Los Angeles Clippers
Runner up: Lou Williams, SG/PG, Los Angeles Clippers
Love them or hate them, the Los Angeles Clippers are blessed with some quality bench players.
Although they are toeing the line in regards to being considered for the award. Both players come off the bench, yes, but both Montrezl Harrell and Lou Williams both play close to 30 minutes a night each meaning that they are on the floor more than the starters on the team play.
However, I digress.
Lou Williams at this point has a birthright to the 6th man of the year trophy, having been the recipient of the award 3-times previously. Williams does what he does, he is going to score in bunches, he is going to help the Clippers 2nd unit outscore their opponents virtually every single night single handily and he takes pride in that role. After so many years of doing the same thing maybe we are starting to take what he is doing for granted. Maybe not.
However, it is his fiery, defensive-minded, hard-nosed power forward team-mate that beats him to the award this season.
Harrell is a joy for any coach to have on their team. He knows his role, he does it at a high level and leaves everything on the floor every time he plays.
Few players will out hustle or out muscle Harrell on a game to game basis. While the likes of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are the main guys within the Clippers squad, Harrell and his point guard Patrick Beverley is the players who set the tone for the Clippers defensively.
Being 26, there is still room for Harrell to grow, which should be scary for the rest of the NBA. He might never be an all-star or be the best player on his team but Montrezl Harrell will always be an important player for whatever team he plays for.