- Jordan Clarkson has +500 odds to repeat as Sixth Man of the Year.
- Joe Ingles has +1100 odds to win the award but might start too much to be eligible.
- Kevin Huerter has +1400 odds to be the 6MotY but will likely start most games for the Atlanta Hawks.
SALT LAKE CITY - The NBA Sixth Man of the Year award often goes under the radar but it’s an intriguing award with a potentially profitable race for sports bettors to get involved in.
None of the favorites to win the Sixth Man of the Year award in 2021-22 NBA season have odds shorter than +500, while there are 11 candidates with odds shorter than +2000.
The top three candidates on the NBA odds boards are Jordan Clarkson of the Utah Jazz, Joe Ingles of the Utah Jazz, and Kevin Huerter of the Atlanta Hawks.
Jordan Clarkson, Utah Jazz, +500
Clarkson is a prototypical Sixth Man candidate - a talented guard who provides playmaking and shotmaking off the bench to a playoff team.
He is the reigning Sixth Man of the Year award winner and is following in the stylistic footsteps of Lou Williams and Jamal Crawford, both three-time winners of the award.
In 2020-2021, Clarkson put up 18.4 points per game, with four rebounds and 2.5 assists. His skillset is noticeable amongst the crowd of roleplayers that make up the Utah Jazz bench lineup.
In short, Clarkson fits the profile of previous winners of the award, is a previous winner himself, came off the bench for 67 of the 68 games he played last year and is in a premium spot on a playoff team.
Joe Ingles, Utah Jazz, +1100
Ingles is a remarkable player for the Jazz - an excellent three-point shooter who helps provide an offensive boost to a defense-focused team.
Ingles shot 45% from three-point range in the 2020-21 season while shooting more than six three-pointers a game, both career highs.
However, his defense genuinely is a weak point. The Jazz was one of the worst teams for guarding wings in 2020-2021, and Ingles is a big part of the reason why.
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Another potential confounding variable for Ingles’ Sixth Man candidacy is that he is very often in the starting lineup for the Jazz.
In 2020-21, Ingles started 30 of 67 games for the Jazz and performed admirably in his starts, which does raise the question of if he’ll even be eligible for the award this year.
Kevin Huerter, Atlanta Hawks, +1400
Huerter was an excellent player in the playoffs for the Hawks and that could presage a season in which he makes a mark over the course of the schedule.
He put up 11.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 2020-21 and spent the year on a playoff team, which tends to help Sixth Man candidates get noticed.
Huerter, however, is likely going to be a starter - he’s started a majority of games with the Hawks.
In 2020-21, he started 49 of the 69 games he played in, which would make him ineligible for the award.
If Huerter takes a leap this season, he’ll likely also end up starting more games, and if he starts more games than not, he will not be eligible for the award.
Sports betting fans will have to weigh these factors when deciding who to bet on for the Sixth Man of the Year award.
Maxwell joined the USAOnlineSportsbooks team in 2019. He focuses on creating sports betting content that informs and educates. He focuses on the NBA, the NFL, College Football and Basketball, and whatever else comes across his desk.
