NBA: Top 10 candidates for 2018-19 Sixth Man of the Year award
3. Julius Randle, New Orleans Pelicans
This award typically doesn’t go to big men. In fact, dating back to 2000, the only Sixth Men of the Year who played power forward or center were Antawn Jamison (2003-04) and Lamar Odom (2010-11). Over the last decade, it’s been all guards except for Odom.
However, if he earns enough minutes off the bench, Julius Randle‘s fit with the New Orleans Pelicans is perfect enough to buck the trend. In an up-tempo system where he’s either playing as a small-ball 5 or a traditional 4 next to Anthony Davis, Randle has a chance to build on his career year.
Last season, Randle averaged a career-high 16.1 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, and though he started in more games than he came off the bench for, he still dominated with the second unit for 33 games. With AD likely shifting over to the 5 and Nikola Mirotic expected to stretch the floor at the 4, Randle coming off the bench makes the most sense.
Though he can’t shoot, he’ll be able to attack opposing second units with his speed, bully strength and underrated ball-handling abilities. If the Pelicans feature him enough despite his lack of a jump shot, he’ll have the chance to post big numbers on a Western Conference playoff team.