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Armstrong wins NBA's Sixth Man Award

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Posted: Monday May 10, 1999 01:40 PM

Armstrong averaged 13.8 points, 6.7 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 2.2 steals 2.16 this season. AP

NEW YORK (AP) -- Darrell Armstrong, the Orlando Magic's spunky point guard, easily won the NBA Sixth Man Award today as the league's best player off the bench.

Armstrong, one of the keys to Orlando's surprising success this season, received 85 out of a possible 118 votes from a panel of sports writers and broadcasters.

Rasheed Wallace of the Portland Trail Blazers finished second with 16 votes, and Indiana's Antonio Davis and Jalen Rose tied for third with five votes each.

The 30-year-old Armstrong, known for drinking sweet coffee just before games and eating chocolate at halftime, is a remarkable story of perseverance in pro basketball. He's played in the CBA, USBL, Global Basketball Association and in Cyprus and Spain.

NBA Sixth Man Award Winners Year Recipient Team 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 1984 1983 Darrell Armstrong Danny Manning John Starks Toni Kukoc Anthony Mason Dell Curry Clifford Robinson Detlef Schrempf Detlef Schrempf Ricky Pierce Eddie Johnson Roy Tarpley Ricky Pierce Bill Walton Kevin McHale Kevin McHale Bobby Jones Orlando Phoenix New York Chicago New York Charlotte Portland Indiana Indiana Milwaukee Phoenix Dallas Milwaukee Boston Boston Boston Philadelphia

A former place-kicker at Fayetteville State who was undrafted by the NBA, Armstrong originally signed with the Magic only a few weeks before Orlando went to the NBA Finals in 1995.

With his limitless energy and clutch shooting, his role with the team increased two years ago, but he missed more than half the 1997-98 season with a shoulder injury. He signed a five-year, $18 million contract in January.

The 6-foot-1, 180-pound guard averaged career highs in points (13.8), assists (6.7), rebounds (3.6) and steals (2.16) in about 30 minutes a game this season. He came off the bench in 35 of the season's 50 games and started in the others toward the end of the season as the Magic took the No. 3 seed in the playoffs.

Armstrong also shot .904 (161-for-178) from the free-throw line, third best in the league.

Others receiving votes for the Sixth Man Award included, Miami's Terry Porter, Milwaukee's Dell Curry and Toronto's Dee Brown, all with two each; and Utah's Howard Eisley (one).

 

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