J.R. Smith wins Sixth Man Award

GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- New York Knicks guard J.R. Smith has won the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year award.

Smith received 484 points, including 72 first-place votes, from a panel of 121 writers and broadcasters. The Clippers' Jamal Crawford finished second with 352 points, getting 31 first-place votes.

Smith averaged 18.1 points in 80 games, all off the bench. He had 29 games in which he scored 20 points as a reserve, tying Crawford for the NBA lead.

Smith helped the Knicks win the Atlantic Division title for the first time since 1994. New York is the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and leads the Boston Celtics 1-0 in their first-round playoff series.

It's the second individual award in two years for the Knicks, following Tyson Chandler's Defensive Player of the Year honor last season.

Smith is the third player in Knicks history to win the NBA's Sixth Man Award, joining John Starks(1996-97) and Anthony Mason (1994-95).

Despite not making a start, Smith was one of the Knicks' most important players. He played more than 40 minutes seven times and was often their only scoring threat behind Carmelo Anthony.

For most of the season, it seemed like Smith would take second place to Crawford.

He struggled for much of January, shooting 36 percent from the floor in that month, including just 25 percent from beyond the arc.

But during the Knicks' 13-game winning streak late in the regular season, the New Jersey native was a model of consistency. He scored 23.2 points per game on 49 percent shooting; prior to the winning streak, Smith averaged 16.7 points per game on 40 percent shooting.

Smith doubled the percentage of shots he took in the restricted area during the winning streak (15.6 percent before March 18; 33 percent in the 13 games following it).

He had three straight 30-point games March 26-29, the first time that was done by a reserve since Milwaukee's Ricky Pierce in 1990.

Smith ended the season leading all bench players in points per game (18.1). Crawford was second with 16.5 points per game. Golden State's Jarrett Jack (12.9 ppg) was another leading candidate for the honor.

Smith signed a two-year contract worth $2.8 million in the offsesaon. The second year has a player option and Smith is expected to decline it and test free agency.

The Knicks will have Smith's Early Bird Rights, meaning they can exceed the salary cap to re-sign the shooting guard if he decides to decline the 2013-14 option.

The Early Bird Rights allow the Knicks to pay Smith up to 175 percent of this season's salary, which is $2.8 million. That means the Knicks could offer him a contract for next season at about $5 million, and the agreement could be up to four years with standard raises.