Dating back to 1982-83 when the award was first introduced, the Phoenix Suns have the most Sixth Man of the Year winners in league history with four — that’s tied with the Boston Celtics.
A Celtics player has won the award five times total, tied with the Los Angeles Clippers for the most of any franchise. Kevin McHale was a two-time winner for Boston, while the Clips saw bucket-getters Jamal Crawford and Lou Williams each win the award twice.
The Suns don’t have any repeat winners of the award, but they do have a long history of bench contributors taking home the honor across three different decades.
The current Suns player who could flirt with Sixth Man of the Year honors by season’s end (or at least get some votes) is Collin Gillespie.
The third-year guard out of Villanova has been brilliant off the bench for Phoenix this year. He’s averaging career highs in a multitude of categories as he gets a career-high in minutes under first-year head coach Jordan Ott. Gillespie’s also been showing up in crunch time, hitting a game-winning shot in an NBA Cup game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Nov. 21.
While Suns fans certainly appreciate Gillespie’s contributions, oddsmakers aren’t as keen.
According to Bet MGM as of Nov. 20, the betting favorites for the award are Miami Heat forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. (+240), Oklahoma City Thunder sophomore Ajay Mitchell (+700) and Portland Trail Blazers veteran Jerami Grant (+1400).
Sadly, Gillespie doesn’t even crack Bet MGM’s top 15 SMOY candidates. Here’s how he stacks up with their top three (all stats through Nov. 26):
- Jaime Jaquez Jr.: 16.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 0.6 steals, 53% shooting, 21.9% 3-point shooting
- Ajay Mitchell: 15.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.7 steals, 46.4% shooting, 33.3% 3-point shooting
- Jerami Grant: 19.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 0.8 steals, 45% shooting, 39.6% 3-point shooting
- Collin Gillespie: 12.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.2 steals, 43.2% shooting, 41.3% 3-point shooting
Gillespie obviously doesn’t match the scoring output of the other guys, but he’s right in the mix in other statistical categories and that doesn’t even fully quantify his impactful defense.
Maybe the betting markets will start to give Gillespie more respect as the season goes along, but as it stands he’s a longshot to join the list of Suns who’ve won Sixth Man of the Year.
Here’s a look back at those super subs:
Eddie Johnson, 1988-89 Sixth Man of the Year
Former Suns bucket-getter and current broadcast analyst for the franchise, Eddie Johnson could flat-out score.
Throughout his Sixth Man of the Year campaign in 1988-89, “The Smooth Shooter” averaged 21.5 points per game primarily off the bench (70 games played, seven starts) on 49.7% shooting.
Playing before the 3-point shot was en vogue, EJ only attempted 2.5 shots per game from beyond the arc that year, but he sank 41.3% of those attempts. That mark ranked him sixth in the NBA.
“The Man Who Put the J in Jumpshot” was first and foremost a scorer, but he did add 4.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game during his SMOY campaign.
Danny Manning, 1997-98 Sixth Man of the Year
It was roughly a decade before another Suns player won Sixth Man of the Year.
Danny Manning wasn’t anywhere near the outside shooter Johnson was, but he was nonetheless a reliable scorer off the bench in Phoenix.
During his SMOY campaign, Manning averaged 13.5 points per game on 51.6% shooting from the field. He added 5.6 rebounds, two assists and one steal per game to the box score.
Interestingly, Manning was better in most statistical categories the season prior in 1996-97, when he finished seventh in Sixth Man of the Year voting.
Rodney Rogers, 1999-00 Sixth Man of the Year
Wake Forest legend Rodney Rogers joined the Suns’ Sixth Man of the Year crop just two seasons after Manning won the award.
Rogers in many ways was ahead of his time as an NBA archetype. A burly, 6-foot-7 forward, Rogers was a skilled 3-point marksman despite his size.
During his SMOY campaign, Rogers finished 16th in the league in total 3-pointers made (115 of them) while making a sterling 43.9% of his long-range attempts — ranking him fourth in the NBA.
That combination of volume and efficiency from deep was a rare feat from guys Rogers’ size back then.
In fact, the only players listed at 6-foot-7 or taller who made more 3-pointers than Rogers that season were Clifford Robinson and a pair of future Hall of Famers: Reggie Miller and a then-21-year-old Dirk Nowitzki. Rogers had a better 3-point percentage than all three.
All told, Rogers averaged 13.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game for Phoenix during his SMOY year.
No. 54 died at age 54 on Nov. 21, 2025, and he’ll always be remembered as a fan favorite in the Valley.
Leandro Barbosa, 2006-07 Sixth Man of the Year
“The Brazilian Blur” was a perfect complement to Steve Nash’s “Run and Gun” Suns era.
Living up to his nickname, Barbosa was among the fastest players in the NBA with or without the ball in his hands. He put together arguably the most complete Sixth Man of the Year campaign of any Suns player who won the award.
Barbosa averaged 18.1 points, 4.0 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 47.6% from the field and a sparkling 43.4% from 3-point range during his Sixth Man campaign.
He comfortably beat out San Antonio Spurs Hall of Famer Manu Ginobili for the award, which should add the appropriate context.
Barbosa is no doubt among the best “super subs” in Suns franchise history.