In Praise of Basketball's Sixth Men
In a season with UCLA returning All-America candidate Jaime Jaquez Jr. and one of the nation’s premier combo-guards, Tyger Campbell — combining them with a stacked recruiting class featuring blue-chippers Adem Bona and Amari Bailey — the most important player to the Bruins’ aspirations for a 12th national championship comes off the bench.
Veteran reserve David Singleton hit his first seven field-goal attempts en route to 18 points as UCLA trounced Maryland on Dec. 14, 87-60. It marked Singleton’s sixth double-figure scoring game of the season and fourth time hitting on at least three 3-pointers.
Given the significance of the three-ball in March, and Singleton’s ability to hit both for volume (26 in 11 games this season) and accuracy (50 percent for the year) just might make him the biggest X-factor not just for UCLA, but all of college basketball.
As a longtime appreciator of the role a good sixth man plays on a winning team, Singleton is fast skyrocketing up my list of favorites at any level of the game.
It’s a spot that doesn’t necessarily garner the most attention. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the NBA introducing the Sixth Man Award to its postseason rotation, and some undeniably big names have held the honor: Bill Walton, Antawn Jamison1, and the man with whom I most closely associate the trophy, Manu Ginobili.
A San Antonio Spurs fan throughout my younger years, Ginobili qualifies as a personal favorite for his contributions to the franchise’s glory years alone. But had he not donned silver-and-black throughout his NBA career, I would still appreciate Ginobili’s game2.
And what’s not to appreciate? Ginobili’s well-rounded, high-energy game earned induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame this year, a remarkable honor for someone who started in only about one-third of his professional games.
But while he appeared in the starting five sparingly, Ginobili was inarguably at worst the third-most important player to Spurs championships in 2005 and 2007. I contend he was second only to Tim Duncan during the ‘05 Finals run.
Even as his career wound down, Ginobili remained San Antonio’s Mr. Clutch, delivering two of the most iconic moments in Spurs Playoffs history.
Of course, in citing Manu Ginobili, I’m referencing arguably the most high-profile and best Sixth Man in basketball history. He exists in rarefied air when compared to other important reserves, both in college and the NBA.
Consider Vinnie Johnson. “The Microwave” did his thing for the Detroit Pistons during the Bad Boys championships, averaging between 12 and 16 points per game every season from 1983 through 1989, primarily coming off the bench.
His nickname came from his ability to start cooking immediately upon entering the rotation and heating up the Detroit offense. The Microwave is who came to mind for me watching David Singleton fire it up for UCLA — and I’m not alone.
Shoutout to Friend of The Press Break and UCLA Rivals reporter Tracy McDannald for this tidbit:
Thank goodness for YouTube. The vast vault of highlights available in a few keystrokes keeps alive the memory of basketball’s significant figures who otherwise don’t get the shine they deserve.
In general, the Sixth Man is an under-appreciated role. Sure, the NBA has awarded the top reserve for 40 years now, but can you name the five-most recent recipients of Sixth Man of the Year?
How about just last season’s?
Maybe this is projection on the part of The Press Break, but it just feels like outstanding reserves don’t get enough of their due. And in the NBA, there’s at least an award for them. College basketball should adopt its own version.
This year, Singleton would be front-and-center in a hypothetical race. Last year’s version seems tailormade for the contributions Remy Martin gave Kansas on its way to the national championship.
Martin and Singleton followed different career arcs, albeit with the same motivation. Singleton remained at UCLA despite coming the bench, spurning the increasingly common tendency of talented college players to pursue brighter individual spotlights to instead play a necessary role on a title contender.
Martin, a Pac-12 Conference Player of the Year caliber performer and volume scorer at Arizona State, left individual glory to be part of a Final Four run — a run culminating with Martin in a critical spot for the Jayhawks.
Both journeys are commendable, as is the role of the Sixth Man in general.
Antawn Jamison ranks among my most under-appreciated hoopers in my time following the game. He’s arguably one of the greatest Tar Heels of all-time — a better college player than teammate Vince Carter despite not being as flashy — and averaged 18.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game through a 16-season NBA career.
I won’t lie, if he’d played for a rival I’d have hated Manu Ginobili. But that’s the mark of a player every contending team needs, an aggressive defender and consummate hustle guy who frustrates opponents.