Dallas Mavericks Awards: Top Bench Player

Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

It’s awards time! Sadly, not a single Dallas Mavericks’ player earned any of the end of season honors, but that doesn’t mean we can’t hand out our very own.

This time we’ll be deciding who was the Mavs most important bench player. Vince Carter was the designated 6th man, but Devin Harris, Brandan Wright, Jae Crowder,  and DeJuan Blair all pitched in to form one of the best benches in the NBA.

Ace Feltman (@MFFeLtman): Vince Carter. Whenever you have a potential 6th Man of the Year candidate, chances are he was your best player off the bench. Also small-time-wanna-be-big-time writer props to Brandan Wright and Devin Harris, who upon returning from their shoulder and toe injuries respectively propelled the Mavs bench back up towards the better benches in the league, a mainstay in the Rick Carlisle era.

Brian Gosset (@Gosset41): Bernard James, no, not really. Vince Carter is my pick here. He got ripped off by finishing sixth in Sixth Man of the Year voting. He adds the much need spark, along with Harris, that the bench brings. The Mavs really don’t have much bench scoring after Carter and Harris (and Wright), so Carter really helps the Mavs in every way, even at his age.

Bailey Rogers (@BRogers789): Vince Carter. I may have cursed his name for stretches this season, but there’s really no way that anyone can rationally pick another person for this award. He’s the only  Mav who even sniffed the 6th Man of the Year award. He hit the best game winning shot I’ve ever seen. Seriously, I defy anyone to prove that the AAC has ever been louder than when Vince hit that shot.

Jose De Leon (@JoseOfLion06): Vince Carter. Weird to think that a guy who was once a franchise player could accept losing to Father Time and become an excellent bench player. Vince missed just one game this season and started in exactly zero games. He played his role incredibly well: would come in for Dirk Nowitzki and made sure the offense didn’t sputter. We saw too much hero ball out of him this season but when you look at the rest of the bench, who was going to come close to doing what he’s still capable of?

Rami Michail (@RamiMichail): This is a very difficult choice. Carter led the way all season. Wright was a monster in the pick-n-roll and actually was huge in Carter’s improved play. Then Harris was just vital. Though his numbers weren’t pretty, Harris lessened the burden on Carter. Since I can’t pick all three..I’m gonna go with Harris.