NBA: Top 10 candidates for 2017-18 Sixth Man of the Year Award
1. Eric Gordon
Can you blame us for putting the reigning Sixth Man of the Year in the top spot considering the holes in the cases of every other candidate? Crawford is old, Iggy’s minutes will be limited, James Johnson may start, Kanter and Clarkson may be putting up empty numbers on losing teams, and Tyler Johnson, Patrick Patterson and J.R. Smith may not have the numbers.
More from Hoops Habit
- 7 Players the Miami Heat might replace Herro with by the trade deadline
- Meet Cooper Flagg: The best American prospect since LeBron James
- Are the Miami Heat laying the groundwork for their next super team?
- Sophomore Jump: 5 second-year NBA players bound to breakout
- NBA Trades: The Lakers bolster their frontcourt in this deal with the Pacers
Not only is Eric Gordon coming off a season in which he averaged 16.2 points per game on 37.6 percent shooting from downtown, but he’s poised to play the exact same role on an even better Houston Rockets team.
The Rockets got more star power with Chris Paul and added wing depth with P.J. Tucker and Luc Mbah a Moute, but their guard depth is still heavily dependent on Gordon’s playmaking, scoring and long range shooting off the bench.
After enjoying the first healthy season of his career in forever with 75 games, there’s still risk in making Gordon our No. 1. His injury history is no joke, and 2017-18 represents his biggest opportunity to prove it was no one-year fluke.
Next: Top 10 candidates for the 2017-18 NBA Rookie of the Year Award
But if he’s able to stay on the floor again and put up similar numbers, he’s got the inside track to repeating since he plays on a prominent team, will put up a solid stat line and has already solidified his reputation as one of the league’s premier sixth men.