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Thinking about how a lot of the most notable 6th men are guards, but with Kevin Love having a nice season off the bench, and some of the best 6th men ever were bigs (McHale, Walton)

Why are most 6th men guards? If you had your pick, would you choose a guard or a big? Why?

6th men are often good offensive players that lack the defense to be starting consistently. I think this prototype just works better for guards. Someone like Jamal Crawford or a Tyler Herro can lead bench units on offense with a combination of their scoring and playmaking, which even without the defense factored in seems more valuable to me than the inside scoring of someone like Trez.

Dutchball97 wrote:6th men are often good offensive players that lack the defense to be starting consistently. I think this prototype just works better for guards. Someone like Jamal Crawford or a Tyler Herro can lead bench units on offense with a combination of their scoring and playmaking, which even without the defense factored in seems more valuable to me than the inside scoring of someone like Trez.

Jamal was fools' gold when it mattered for largely the same reasons as Trez: his volume scoring didn't hold up to playoff coaching and intensity and he was a turnstile on defense. I think size/position matters less than willingness to buy into the team concept and at least not being a total defensive liability.

More to the point, after having three Sixth Men of the Year and winning nothing with any of them while they all disappeared in the playoffs, I'm starting to think sixth men in general are like running backs. Unless you have a rare generational talent in that spot (i.e. Ginobili, Havlicek, McHale), you're better off going with a "sixth man by committee" approach and putting resources towards more important needs.

I think it entirely depends on what your team is in need up. If they have two good big men in the starting lineup, a 3rd one doesn't seem so important. Likewise, if you're short of good big men in your lineup, a good big 6th man might work better.

MartinToVaught wrote:

Dutchball97 wrote:6th men are often good offensive players that lack the defense to be starting consistently. I think this prototype just works better for guards. Someone like Jamal Crawford or a Tyler Herro can lead bench units on offense with a combination of their scoring and playmaking, which even without the defense factored in seems more valuable to me than the inside scoring of someone like Trez.

Jamal was fools' gold when it mattered for largely the same reasons as Trez: his volume scoring didn't hold up to playoff coaching and intensity and he was a turnstile on defense. I think size/position matters less than willingness to buy into the team concept and at least not being a total defensive liability.

More to the point, after having three Sixth Men of the Year and winning nothing with any of them while they all disappeared in the playoffs, I'm starting to think sixth men in general are like running backs. Unless you have a rare generational talent in that spot (i.e. Ginobili, Havlicek, McHale), you're better off going with a "sixth man by committee" approach and putting resources towards more important needs.

I get how you come to your conclusion but I don't think I agree, at least not yet. These recent 6MOY winners are spark plugs that can lead an offense to being at least average when the starters are out, which is definitely valuable imo. I imagine your committee idea as a bunch of 3&D guys looking at each other without anyone being able to actually provide some playmaking or get a quick bucket.

I said I don't agree yet though because the more we move towards positionless basketball where everyone on the floor can do a bit of everything, the less we're going to need these spark plug guys. I'd also never try to build around a 6MOY but I don't really see many examples of teams going this route in the first place.

A microwave scorer is the most valuable 6th man IMO. Backup bigs aren't going to be able to impact the game like a guy you can throw in to create some shots and get buckets

Hondo was probably the best 6th man ever early in his career. Can play all 3 perimeter spots and can score, rebound, pass, and defend.
So somebody like that.