By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Filipino-American Utah Jazz guard and former Gilas Pilipinas member Jordan Clarkson took home the NBA Sixth Man of the Year award besting teammate Joe Ingles and former MVP Derrick Rose of the New York Knicks.
The scoring two-guard garnered a unanimous decision of 65 first-place votes (407 points) from sportswriters and broadcasters all around the world.
Meanwhile, Ingles had 34 first-place votes (272 points) while Rose had one first-place vote (77 points).
Aside from the prized award, the Fil-Am also etched his name in the Jazz history books as the first player from the franchise to achieve such feat.
Also, Clarkson and Ingles’ first and second finish in the Sixth man voting made it to the NBA record as the first teammates to vie for the top spot of the award.
It was a stellar season for Clarkson after improving his offensive game and averaged 18.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 26.7 minutes of playing time per contest.
Clarkson’s 18.4 scoring average in the season is also the highest recorded average of a sixth man winner in the history of the NBA.
Currently, Clarkson and the Jazz trail 0-1 against the tough and gritty Memphis Grizzlies and are hoping to even the series at home.
