Basketball Sixth Man power rankings: two Heat players challenging for the title

No clear front-runner for Sixth Man of the Year exists. Can Duncan Robinson and Jaime Jaquez Jr. make a name for themselves in the race?

An electrifying scoring guard has claimed the 6th Man of the Year award every year since 2012 (Montrezl Harrell was an outlier in 2020). That’s the precedent that’s been set. Miami’s own Tyler Herro won the award two seasons ago before it was clear he could and would dominate in a starter’s role.

No one is currently lapping the competition; there are many viable names for the 6th Man of the Year award. With the race seemingly wide open, where do Duncan Robinson and Jaime Jaquez Jr. check in on the marathon?

Duncan Robinson’s case

Duncan Robinson’s resurgence has been a beautiful display of hard work. He entered the season with a tighter handle, more confidence, and a more bottomless finishing bag. Add the fact that his prolific jumper is flowing at an all-time high. Robinson is shooting 44% on seven 3-point attempts. It’s close to a 12 percent improvement from a season ago (Robinson is also in the Most Improved conversation).

Robinson has started 16 of his 30 games played. Players must come off the bench for half their games to qualify for 6MOY. Robinson is not on a pace to do that, but with Miami getting healthier, he may reach that threshold. He doesn’t crack the top five, but Robinson has been a high-impact bench piece to keep an eye on.

Since 2012, a dynamic scoring guard has won the 6th Man of the Year title each year (with the exception of 2020, when Montrezl Harrell was an anomaly). It is the established precedent. Two seasons prior to it being obvious that Tyler Herro, a player from Miami, could and would dominate in a starting role, Herro won the award.

There are numerous candidates for the 6th Man of the Year title, but nobody is currently outperforming the others. Where do Duncan Robinson and Jaime Jaquez Jr. check in on the marathon, given that the race looks to be wide open?