NBA Award Watch: Wade, Kanter and Durant make first appearances

Sixth Man of the Year

When Dwyane Wade reunited with best friend and former Heatle, LeBron James, the consensus response from people around the NBA world was that Wade was on his last legs.

Wade was originally slated to be the starter alongside James, but that wasn’t working for Cleveland and they fell to a 5-7 record quickly. Now they’ve rolled off 12 straight victories and find themselves in second place thanks to Wade and the second unit.

A unit that averages nearly 40 points per game and is ranked fifth in the NBA. Wade’s a huge part of that, scoring 11.4 points per game and dishing 3.9 assists per game. While his scoring average is down, he’s playing at a higher rate of efficiency and playing stronger on the defensive side.

Wade’s running the second unit, a group that features Kyle Korver, Channing Frye and Jeff Green. As a result of his production and the Cavaliers’ second-unit success, Wade is deserving of the Sixth Man of the Year honors.