The greatest sixth man from each NBA team

Greatest sixth man in Dallas Mavericks history: Jason Terry

Although throughout NBA history the sixth man role enveloped players at every position, but by the mid-2000s most teams utilized a wing scorer — often a combo guard — as their top player off the bench. One of the best of these was Jason Terry, who perfected the job with the Dallas Mavericks.

Terry joined the Mavericks in 2004, and after starting for three seasons moved onto the bench. He was the quintessential sixth man, only making spot starts but still averaging over 30 minutes per game each of the next five seasons. In 2008-09 Terry put in his best scoring season, averaging 19.6 points per game despite just 11 starts.

That year Terry won the Sixth Man of the Year award, earning 95 percent of the first-place vote. The season before Terry placed third in that award voting, while in 2011 he finished second. That 2011 season saw Terry play a key part of a run to the NBA Finals that saw that core win their only title.

The Dallas Mavericks under Rick Carlisle and his predecessor Avery Johnson made the utilization of a sixth man part of their everyday strategy. Prior to Terry excelling in the role, Johnson deployed Jerry Stackhouse off the bench, and in recent seasons Carlisle has deployed a number of combo guards off the bench.