Keldon Johnson of the San Antonio Spurs has won the 2025-26 Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award, the NBA announced on Wednesday. He becomes the second Spurs player this season to claim a major honor, following Victor Wembanyama's unanimous Defensive Player of the Year win on Monday. Johnson set a franchise record for bench points while contributing to the Spurs' 62-20 regular season.
The NBA revealed Johnson as the winner, selected by a global media panel of 100 voters. He received 404 total points, including 63 first-place votes, ahead of Miami's Jaime Jaquez Jr., who tallied 331 points and 34 first-place votes. Johnson averaged 13.2 points, 5.4 rebounds per game off the bench, appearing in all 83 games for the Spurs, including the NBA Cup final. Only Jaquez scored more total bench points league-wide this season, while Minnesota's Naz Reid led in rebounds from the reserve role. Johnson's 1,081 bench points shattered the Spurs' record previously held by Manu Ginóbili, who won the award in 2007-08 with 927 such points. Johnson joins Ginóbili as the only Spurs players to earn the honor. Drafted 29th overall in 2020, Johnson evolved from starter to key reserve. Midway through the 2023-24 season, coach Gregg Popovich asked him to come off the bench amid the arrival of No. 1 pick Wembanyama. Johnson struggled initially, later reflecting in an essay for The Player's Tribune: 'I couldn't wrap my head around it. And ultimately, I didn't take it well. I sulked.' He rebounded this season to become a vital piece for the contending Spurs.
