NBA announces Sixth Man of the Year Award winner

Pritchard topped the other finalists, the Pistons’ Malik Beasley and the Cavaliers’ Ty Jerome, for the honor. Pritchard received 82 of a possible 100 first-place votes and recorded 454 total points. Beasley notched 13 first-place votes and 279 points.  Jerome notched two first-place votes and 91 points.

Pritchard posted career-high numbers across the board for the defending champions, averaging 14.3 points, 3.8 rebounds 3.5 assists and 0.9 steals in 28.4 minutes per game.

Pritchard, who played 80 regular-season contests, shot 47.2 percent overall and 40.7 percent from distance. He’s in the first year of a four-year, $30M contract that he signed in October 2023, which now looks like a big bargain.

Beasley, playing on a one-year contract, averaged 16.3 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.9 steals in 27.8 minutes and didn’t miss a game. The 3-point specialist shot 43 percent overall and 41.6 percent from distance and was a major reason why Detroit more than tripled its win total.

Jerome, who barely played last season due to an ankle injury, averaged 12.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 19.9 minutes while making 70 appearances. He shot 51.6 percent overall and 43.9 percent from three-point land.

This is the second time in three seasons a Celtics guard has won the award. Malcolm Brogdon earned Sixth Man honors in 2023. The Timberwolves’ Naz Reid captured the award last spring.