NEW YORK – The New York Knicks’ J.R. Smith is the winner of the 2012-13 Kia NBA Sixth Man Award as the league’s best player in a reserve role, the NBA announced today. Smith, who came off the bench in all 80 games in which he appeared, led all reserves in scoring, averaging 18.1 points. Additionally, Smith contributed 5.3 rpg, 2.7 apg and 1.3 spg in 33.5 minutes per game to a Knicks squad that went 54-28 and earned the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Smith received 484 of a possible 1,084 points, including 72 first-place votes, from a panel of 121 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. Jamal Crawford of the Los Angeles Clippers finished second with 352 points (31 first-place votes). Jarrett Jack of the Golden State Warriors finished third with 170 points (14 first-place votes).

In order to be eligible for this award, players had to have come off the bench in more games than they started. Players were awarded five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote.

Smith, who led reserves in 30-point (seven) and 20-point games (29), became the first player with four 30-point games off bench in same month (March) since Ricky Pierce had four in November of 1990. He earned Player of the Week honors for games played March 25-31, leading the Knicks to a 4-0 record with averages of 29.8 points (second in the league), 7.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals. In Smith’s 80 games, the Knicks enjoyed a +5.3 score differential with him on the court compared with +1.9 when he was on the bench.

As part of its support of the Sixth Man Award, Kia Motors America (KMA) will donate a new 2014 Kia Sorento LX CUV to the J.R. Smith Youth Foundation, which provides opportunities and support for young people through education, sports, the Arts and other beneficial activities through scholarships, grants and programs designed to further those goals.  Kia Motors will present a Sorento to the charity of choice of each of five 2012-13 season-end award winners as part of “The Kia NBA Performance Awards.” Following this season, Kia Motors will have donated a total of 26 new vehicles to charitable organizations since its support of the NBA’s prestigious season-end honors began in 2008.

The 2012-13 Kia NBA Sixth Man Award is part of a series of on-court performance awards called “The Kia NBA Performance Awards.” The series, currently in its sixth season, is part of a multiyear marketing partnership between KMA and the NBA, and includes five of the league’s most prestigious year-end honors: Most Valuable Player Award, Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man Award, Most Improved Player Award, and Rookie of the Year.  For the first time, the series also included the Kia NBA Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month during the regular season.  Kia Motors is the Official Automotive Partner of the NBA and the Kia Optima is the league’s Official Vehicle.  For more information on “The Kia NBA Performance Awards” visit NBA.com/Awards.

Attached are the voting results for the 2012-13 Kia NBA Sixth Man Award. The balloting was tabulated by the independent accounting firm of Ernst & Young LLP.

2012-13 KIA NBA SIXTH MAN AWARD VOTING

 Player                       Team               1^st Place (5 pts)   2^nd Place (3 Pts)     3^rd Place (1 Pt)    Total Points

J.R. Smith                 New York                  72                       39                          7                      484

Jamal Crawford          LA Clippers               31                       59                          20                    352

Jarrett Jack                Golden State              14                       15                          55                    170

Kevin Martin             OKC                         2                         3                            12                    31

Ryan Anderson          New Orleans              1                         1                            3                      11

Andre Miller              Denver                      —                         —                            7                      7

Jordan Crawford        Boston                      1                         —                            —                      5

Manu Ginobili           San Antonio              —                         1                            1                      4

Carl Landry               Golden State              —                         1                            1                      4

Nate Robinson           Chicago                     —                         —                            4                      4

Corey Brewer             Denver                      —                         1                            1                      4

Ramon Sessions         Charlotte                   —                         —                            2                      2

Shane Battier             Miami                       —                         —                            2                      2

Luke Babbitt             Portland                    —                         —                            1                      1

Gordon Hayward        Utah                          —                         —                            1                      1

Vince Carter              Dallas                        —                         —                            1                      1

J.J. Redick                 Milwaukee                 —                         —                            1                      1

 

Following is the all-time list of winners:

ALL-TIME KIA NBA SIXTH MAN AWARD WINNERS

1982-83   Bobby Jones, Philadelphia 76ers
1983-84   Kevin McHale, Boston Celtics
1984-85   Kevin McHale, Boston Celtics
1985-86   Bill Walton, Boston Celtics
1986-87   Ricky Pierce, Milwaukee Bucks
1987-88   Roy Tarpley, Dallas Mavericks
1988-89   Eddie Johnson, Phoenix Suns
1989-90   Ricky Pierce, Milwaukee Bucks
1990-91   Detlef Schrempf, Indiana Pacers
1991-92   Detlef Schrempf, Indiana Pacers
1992-93   Clifford Robinson, Portland Trail Blazers
1993-94   Dell Curry, Charlotte Hornets
1994-95   Anthony Mason, New York Knicks
1995-96   Toni Kukoc, Chicago Bulls
1996-97   John Starks, New York Knicks
1997-98   Danny Manning, Phoenix Suns
1998-99   Darrell Armstrong, Orlando Magic
1999-00   Rodney Rogers, Phoenix Suns
2000-01   Aaron McKie, Philadelphia 76ers
2001-02   Corliss Williamson, Detroit Pistons
2002-03   Bobby Jackson, Sacramento Kings
2003-04   Antawn Jamison, Dallas Mavericks
2004-05   Ben Gordon, Chicago Bulls
2005-06   Mike Miller, Memphis Grizzlies
2006-07   Leandro Barbosa, Phoenix Suns
2007-08   Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs
2008-09   Jason Terry, Dallas Mavericks
2009-10   Jamal Crawford, Atlanta Hawks
2010-11   Lamar Odom, Los Angeles Lakers
2011-12   James Harden, Oklahoma City Thunder
2012-13   J.R. Smith, New York Knicks