Boston Celtics guard Malcolm Brogdon has been voted the NBA’s sixth man of the year, overcoming competition from Milwaukee Bucks’ forward Bobby Portis and New York Knicks’ guard Immanuel Quickley.
The former Indiana Pacers guard, who won the rookie of the year award in 2017, takes home the inaugural John Havlicek trophy for his amazing performances off the bench for the seventeen-time champions.
Brogdon received 60 of the 100 first-place votes from the panel of media executives and broadcasters, finishing with 408 points overall. Quickley was second with 326 points from 34 first-place votes, while Portis had six first-place votes and 97 points to finish third.
“This is such an honor. It has definitely been a transition for me, coming from Indiana to Boston,” Brogdon said.
“My last two seasons, they weren’t super successful, so for me that was another gut check for me in understanding that maybe I’m not a No. 1 guy but I can be a great No. 2, 3 or 4.”
Boston Celtics guard Malcolm Brogdon is the recipient of the John Havlicek Trophy as the 2022-23 Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year.
Full voting results and award history: https://t.co/sAPaYcriFa pic.twitter.com/EZD328xus1
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 20, 2023
Brogdon, who had started every NBA game (210 appearances) in the last four years, has embraced his new role in Boston, coming off the bench most times to help the Celtics to the second-best record in the league.
The 30-year-old played in 67 games for the Celtics this season, coming off the bench in all the games. He averaged 14.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists, second in averages only to Los Angeles Clippers’ guard Russell Westbrook among players who played primarily off the bench this season.
He finished the regular season as the third-best offensive outlet for Joe Mazzulla’s side, only behind All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
“Coming to Boston and playing behind JT, behind JB, these guys are proven All-Stars and soon to be All-NBA guys,” Brogdan said. “It’s definitely a good fit for me.”
Brogdon and the Celtics currently lead the Atlanta Hawks 2-0 in their Eastern Conference first-round matchup and will be keen to make it three consecutive wins when they visit the State Farm Arena on Friday night.
