The Utah Jazz enjoyed rare depth last season, boasting the two leading candidates for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award in Jordan Clarkson and Joe Ingles. Each man had a strong case for the award. Clarkson typified the expectations of a sixth man as Quin Snyder’s spark-plug scorer, averaging 24.8 points per 36 minutes.
Meanwhile, Joe Ingles functioned in more of a utility role, and it made him an analytics darling. The crafty Aussie posted a 2.5 Value Over Replacement Player (VORP) and 3.4 Box Plus/Minus (BPM), marks that made him arguably the most valuable reserve in the NBA.
Looking ahead at the young 2021-22 NBA season, both members of the Utah Jazz figure to be in contention for the Sixth Man of the Year award once more. However, in such a deeply talented NBA, several teams boast bench players that will give both Jazzmen a run for their money this season.
Here’s where we have Jordan Clarkson, the incumbent recipient of the award, stacking up with his competition over the 2021-22 season.
Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson vs Brooklyn Nets guard Patty Mills
Patty Mills finds himself in a unique situation. Having spent the vast majority of his 12-year career under the tutelage of Gregg Popovich as a San Antonio Spur, he joined the potentially dynastic Brooklyn Nets over the 2021-22 offseason.
Mills has always had the type of game that lends itself to Sixth Man of the Year consideration, but players in San Antonio have a tendency to forego statistical output in the name of pass-heavy, team-first basketball. Now, as a Brooklyn Net, he may get the opportunity to unleash his full individual potential.
It certainly appeared that way in Brooklyn’s season opener. They may have suffered a tremendous loss to the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks, but it’s hard to pin that on Mills. He had 21 points on 7/11 shooting from the field, including a scorching 7/7 from three-point land.
If he can keep that pace up, Utah Jazz fans can forget about either of their Sixth Man of the Year candidates bringing home the gold.
On a related note: Patty Mills will not shoot 100% from three this season. Even then, he may have other barriers to the award: namely, his role as a bench player. If Kyrie Irving is unable (unwilling?) to return, and Mills maintains that level of production, Steve Nash may be forced to insert him into his starting group.
He’s unlikely to complain about such a development, but it would take him out of the running for the Sixth Man of the Year award.
Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson vs Atlanta Hawks guard Kevin Huerter
If Jordan Clarkson is a quintessential spark-plug, and Joe Ingles is the ultimate utility player, consider the man they call Red Velvet a sort-of hybrid of the two. His best season in the NBA so far came in his 2019-20 sophomore year, when Huerter averaged 12.2 points while shooting 38% on 6.0 three-point attempts per night.
That’s a solid season for a 21-year-old, but when you factor in Huerter’s 4.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game, it becomes clear that this kid is a complete player. He comes equipped with the ability to hit difficult contested three-point attempts, set up teammates, and provide a little much-needed dirty work on the glass.
Nonetheless, there are two factors holding Huerter back from catching up with Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson in the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year race.
Firstly, the Hawks’ depth chart does not necessarily etch out a clear role for Huerter. He might be the primary backup small forward behind De’Andre Hunter, but Cam Reddish is probably a higher upside player and certainly a better defender. He’s also more-than-capable of backing up Bogdan Bogdanovic at the 2 spot, but on the other hand, he probably has a chance to take his place in the starting lineup as well.
Meanwhile, Lou Williams lies in wait at the shooting guard position as well. He’s pretty well-acquainted with the Sixth Man of the Year award. While Huerter should be comfortably ahead of him in the rotation, given Sweet Lou’s age, it’s not exactly clear that the younger off-guard won’t be forced to sacrifice shots to keep the veteran gunner content.
Secondly, Huerter did ever-so-slightly regress between his sophomore campaign and his third season in the NBA. While said regression was absolutely marginal, he’ll actually need to improve significantly if he hopes to surpass Jordan Clarkson as the NBA’s reigning Sixth Man of the Year.
Otherwise, Huerter only stands to improve the odds that at least one member of the Utah Jazz bring home the award for a consecutive year.
Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson vs Utah Jazz forward Joe Ingles
Jazzman vs Jazzman. This may be the only situation wherein two regular rotation players on the Utah Jazz are competing against each other this season. Luckily, the competition is a healthy one.
We’ve already made the case at the J-Notes that Joe Ingles deserved to be recognized as the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year over his teammate in 2020-21, much to the dismay of several commenters. However, two variables stand to decrease Ingles’ odds of winning the award in 2021-22: age and role.
Unfortunately for Utah Jazz fans, Joe Ingles is 34. He seems a likely candidate for age-related regression this season. Although Ingles’ style of play has never been reliant on athleticism, every player in NBA history has begun to decline eventually. Even if his game suffers no drop-off, it’s possible that Quin Snyder will choose to preserve his body for a hopefully deep postseason run
Last year, Ingles’ case for the Sixth Man of the Year award rested on his sterling advanced metrics. This season, the sample size is simply too small to judge his progress thus far. A statistical quirk is worth noting for the sake of amusement: through 2 games, Ingles sports a -19.3 Box Plus/Minus (BPM) and a 167 Offensive Rating. At this stage in the season, take those stats with an entire shaker of salt.
The factor that’s most likely to keep the Sixth Man of the Year award out of the Utah Jazz forward’s hands is the same one that probably did last season: his role. By far, the majority of Sixth Man of the Year winners resemble Jordan Clarkson: microwave scorers.
That’s never been Ingles’ MO. He impacts the game with his three-point spacing, passing, defense and overall basketball IQ. He’s not a strong candidate to score 30 points off the bench on any given night.
You can debate the legitimacy of the award’s criteria as enthusiastically as you’d like, but there’s no denying that Ingles’ style of play doesn’t usually garner Sixth Man of the Year consideration. For that reason, he’s not the leading candidate for that award this season.
Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson
Early into the 2021-22 season, Clarkson is on pace to essentially replicate the production that earned him the 2020-21 Sixth Man of the Year award. He’s averaging 16.5 points per game in 25 minutes per contest, providing the Utah Jazz with the same instant offense they’ve come to rely on from the hyper-talented combo guard.
In stark contrast to teammate Joe Ingles, Clarkson epitomizes the expectations of a Sixth Man of the Year winner. His immense scoring ability makes him a quality primary offensive option during any minute of any game during which neither Donovan Mitchell or Mike Conley is on the floor.
Without question, Clarkson is integral to the Utah Jazz and their plan of attack. If anything is likely to hold him back from repeating as the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year, it’s his inefficiency.
Through two games this season, Clarkson is shooting 40.0% from the field and a gruesome 23.5% from three-point range on 8.5 attempts per night. Again, we’re dealing with a minute sample size, but it’s worth noting that efficiency is an area in which Clarkson has often struggled. His 51.2 True Shooting % (TS%) through two games is admittedly low, but it’s not strikingly far off his career mark of 53.9.
Voters overlooked Clarkson’s shooting woes last season: often times, inefficiency is a flaw that comes along with Clarkson’s role and style of play. However, in light of the phenomenon of voter fatigue, it’s possible that they won’t be so generous this season.
Furthermore, inefficiency isn’t the only factor poised to challenge Clarkson’s status as the NBA’s leading sixth man. A certain young guard with a similar game may do so even if Clarkson’s efficiency spikes.
Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson vs Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro
Critical thinking dictates that we don’t overreact to developments this early in the season. Having said that, if Tyler Herro can continue the torrid pace he’s been on to start the 2021-22 NBA season, nobody on the Utah Jazz or otherwise will even sniff the Sixth Man of the Year award.
Through the Heat’s first two games, Herro is averaging 28.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Between the basic counting stats and his 23.5 Player Efficiency Rating (PER) and 6.7 Box Plus/Minus (BPM), Herro is resembling something closer to an MVP candidate than a Sixth Man of the Year recipient.
Again, two games is a miniscule sample size. Having said that, Herro did flash superstar potential during the Miami Heat’s NBA Finals run from two seasons ago. He has the shot creation ball handling abilities that befit a primary offensive option in the NBA.
Looking at his averages through two games, it’s almost difficult to believe that Herro didn’t start either of his first two games. If he continues to play at this level, Head Coach Eric Spoelstra may be forced to insert Herro into the Heat’s starting lineup.
Then again, he may not. Duncan Robinson may not be as generally gifted as Herro, but his low-usage floor spacing may be a better fit in the starting lineup for a Miami Heat team that features plenty of playmaking in Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry. Herro’s wealth of offensive skill seems likely to be better served on the second unit throughout the 2021-22 season.
As it stands, he’s the NBA’s leading candidate for the Sixth Man of the Year award, and it isn’t particularly close.
We may have criticized Jordan Clarkson’s Sixth Man of the Year campaign in the past, but he was still a deserving recipient of the award. However, Tyler Herro’s production will have to drop-off substantially for him not to win the award in 2021-22.