Minnesota Timberwolves big man Naz Reid won the Sixth Man of the Year award in the 2023-24 season. Last season, the LSU product finished third in Sixth Man of the Year voting. As the start of the season inches forward, award predictions are starting to heat up, and Reid is clearly a frontrunner for this award again. In fact, per DraftKings, Reid has the second-shortest odds to win Sixth Man of the Year, with De'Andre Hunter being the odds-on favorite.
On a recent episode of The Zach Lowe Show, Lowe and his guest, Nekias Duncan, discussed their picks for the 6MOY award. While neither picked Reid to win the award, both had glowing reviews for Naz and noted he felt like an obvious pick. When discussing Reid, Lowe compared him to the guards who often win this award.
"He's [Reid] like the big man version of the guards who win this award all the time, Lowe said. He's just a perfect Sixth Man of the Year candidate. He's really good, he's a fantastically versatile offensive player."
To Lowe's point, Reid's microwave scoring and shot creation make him in a similar mold to many guards who have won this award. Reid's blend of three-level scoring and playmaking makes him a quintessential elite sixth man. On a Wolves team that lacks creation and playmaking next to Anthony Edwards, Reid is incredibly valuable.
Reid checks the boxes of a regular Sixth Man of the Year winner
It's worth noting that guards have mostly dominated this award. Reid is one of six big men to win Sixth Man of the Year, with Montrezl Harrell, Roy Tarpley, Cliff Robinson, Kevin McHale, and Bill Walton being the others. If Reid wins the award this year, he'd join McHale as the only big man to win the award twice.
Oftentimes, Sixth Man of the Year is based on scoring, and reserve big men typically play more of a rim runner and defensive role. Nevertheless, as Lowe noted, Reid's guard-like skill set and microwave scoring abilities allow him to be a regular award candidate.
While the 6-foot-9 big man didn't win Sixth Man of the Year last year, he posted career highs in points (14.2), rebounds (6), and assists (2.3). Team success is often a key talking point in this award, so the Wolves' falling from the No. 3 to the No. 6 seed likely hurt Reid's case last season. Still, if Reid continues to post similar numbers and the Wolves regain a top-four seed, he will be in a prime position to win the award again.
Overall, Reid's unique skill set makes him perfectly suited to win multiple Sixth Man of the Year awards unless he earns a starting spot down the road.