Minnesota Timberwolves center-forward Naz Reid is the 2023-24 Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year.
Reid, 24 years old, in his fifth year out of LSU, made a bit of history on Wednesday, becoming the first player to win the Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award with the Timberwolves in their 35-year existence. He is also the third player to earn the honor after not being selected in the NBA Draft, joining John Starks (1996-97) with the New York Knicks and Darrell Armstrong (1998-99) with the Orlando Magic.
“Blessed to be in this situation,” Reid said in an interview on TNT Tip-Off Show.
“It’s special,” Reid said of his relationship with the fans in the ‘Twin City’, Minnesota, where he has spent his entire career thus far. “It’s one of a kind, something that you obviously dream of, especially at the highest level. They’ve seen me work since Day 1 … I think just being with me, that’s super special.”
This season, Reid posted career highs in points and rebounds per game. He connected on 169 three-pointers, going over his total from the previous two seasons combined (132). Reid also shot a career-high 41.4% from three-point range. Reid helped the Timberwolves (56-26) finish with the second-best record in franchise history.
Embed from Getty Images“We couldn’t be more proud of Naz for being named Sixth Man of the Year,” said Timberwolves Coach Chris Finch in a statement. “His contributions to our team this year were a key reason for our team’s success. His growth this season and attention to detail to improve his game in the offseason were a main factor in Naz becoming the best reserve man in the NBA. On behalf of the entire organization, we congratulate him on this huge honor.”
Reid captured the award in nail-biting fashion, just edging out Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk for second. Reid and Monk had an equal amount of second-place (39) and third-place (10) votes, with the 10-point difference (352 to 342) between them with Reid getting 45 first-place votes, compared to 43 for Monk.
According to NBA Communications, the slight 10-point difference between Reid and Monk was the smallest margin in NBA Sixth Man of the Year balloting under the current voting format, which dates back more than two decades, beginning with the 2002-03 season.
Coming in a distant third was Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis, with five first-place votes and 82 total points. Portis, 29, averaged 13.8 points and 7.4 rebounds while playing in all 82 games for the Bucks and is a fan favorite for the ‘Deer District’. It is the third time in four years Portis has received votes for Sixth Man of the Year, after finishing third last year behind then-Boston Celtics guard Malcolm Brogdon and then-New York Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley.
The other finalist, Los Angeles Clippers guard Norman Powell (two first-place votes) finished fourth, while Atlanta Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanović received five first-place votes to finish fifth, and round out the players to receive at least one first-place vote.
