Keldon Johnson was the ultimate backup for the San Antonio Spurs this season.
He played in all 82 games, all off the bench, becoming only the second NBA player in the last decade to do that. He became the first Spurs player to score 1,000 points as a reserve in a season. And all year long, San Antonio touted him as the best backup in the league.
Voters agreed — and the Spurs have another award winner.
Johnson was announced Wednesday as the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year, joining Manu Ginobili in 2008 as the only Spurs to win the award. It's the first individual NBA award for Johnson, who was part of the U.S. Olympic team that won gold at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
“I started for a long time,” Johnson said on ESPN after he was revealed as the winner. “Now, it's my time to come off the bench. I just continue to analyze the game, come off the bench, go in there and just do my thing.”
Jaime Jaquez Jr. of the Miami Heat finished second in the voting and Tim Hardaway Jr. of the Denver Nuggets was third. Jaquez led all NBA reserves in scoring and double-digit games, while Hardaway led reserves with 205 3-pointers and was fourth in the league in scoring off the bench.
Hardaway and Jaquez tied for ninth in 2024. Hardaway was also fifth in 2021, 10th in 2017 and tied for 13th as a rookie in 2014.
It was the culmination of a two-year run like few others for Johnson, who has appeared in 159 games over the past two seasons — always coming off the bench. No other player in the NBA has played anywhere near that many games without a start in that span.
“I wanted to be part of something special here in San Antonio,” Johnson said. “I knew that in order for me to really be the best for our team that coming off the bench was probably my best possibility. At first, it was tough. I had to (control) my ego and put the team first. After that, the sky was the limit.”
It was the third award the NBA has handed out this postseason, the second won by the Spurs and the first with any real intrigue about who was going to win.
On Monday, San Antonio's Victor Wembanyama became the first unanimous selection as Defensive Player of the Year. And on Tuesday, reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of Oklahoma City was named the Clutch Player of the Year — getting 96 of the 100 possible first-place votes.
In the Sixth Man balloting, Johnson got 63 first-place votes, while Jaquez got 34. Hardaway was followed by Minnesota’s Naz Reid (the 2024 winner who got one first-place vote this year) in fourth, Oklahoma City’s Ajay Mitchell in fifth, Houston’s Reed Sheppard in sixth, Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart (one first-place vote) in seventh, New York’s Mitchell Robinson (one first-place vote) in eighth, Minnesota’s Ayo Dosunmu in ninth, Toronto’s Sandro Mamukelashvili in 10th, San Antonio’s Dylan Harper in 11th and Toronto’s Jamal Shead in 12th.
“It’s a little emotional,” Johnson said. “It’s a big accomplishment. A lot of hard work goes into an award like this.”
The league’s Sportsmanship Award winner will be announced Thursday, with one player from each division — Miami's Bam Adebayo (Southeast), San Antonio's Harrison Barnes (Southwest), Gilgeous-Alexander (Northwest), Golden State's Al Horford (Pacific), Indiana's T.J. McConnell (Central) and Boston's Derrick White (Atlantic) — selected as the finalists. That award is voted on by players, not the media panel that decides most winners.
The Most Improved Player award — either Nickeil Alexander-Walker of Atlanta, Deni Avdija of Portland or Jalen Duren of Detroit — will be revealed Friday.
Other awards that are coming but have not had their announcement dates revealed are Coach of the Year (Detroit's J.B. Bickerstaff, San Antonio's Mitch Johnson or Boston's Joe Mazzulla), Rookie of the Year (Philadelphia's VJ Edgecombe, Dallas' Cooper Flagg or Charlotte's Kon Knueppel) and MVP (Gilgeous-Alexander, Wembanyama or Denver's Nikola Jokic).
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba
San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) watches play during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers, Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
Right-hander Lucas Giolito and the San Diego Padres agreed Wednesday to a one-year contract guaranteeing just under $2.8 million, bolstering the surging club's injury-plagued rotation with the top starter left on the free agent market.
Giolito is guaranteed $2,775,401 in the deal, which includes a 2027 mutual option, a person familiar with the agreement told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because terms were not announced.
A Southern California native, the 31-year-old Giolito went 10-4 with a 3.41 ERA over 26 starts last year for the Boston Red Sox, earning $19 million under a player option. He bounced back solidly after missing the 2024 season because his right ulnar collateral ligament was repaired with an internal brace that March.
He gets a $1.5 million salary from San Diego — which comes to $1,275,401 for the final 159 days of the 187-day season. Giolito's contract includes an $8 million mutual option for 2027 with a $1.5 million buyout.
Giolito's buyout can escalate by up to $3 million for starts this year: $250,000 for eight, $500,000 each for 12 and 16, $750,000 for 20 and $1 million for 2024.
He also can earn bonuses for his finish in Cy Young Award voting: $2 million for finishing among the top five and $1 million for sixth through 10th.
San Diego optioned him to Class A Lake Elsinore.
Giolito has played parts of nine seasons in the major leagues for Washington, the Chicago White Sox, the Los Angeles Angels and Cleveland, going 71-66, with a 4.30 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP.
He has been durable and dependable for most of his career while earning an All-Star selection in 2019 and throwing a no-hitter in 2020. Despite missing a season because of injury, he ranks in the top five among AL pitchers from 2018-25 in innings pitched (1,092), strikeouts (1,153), wins (68) and complete games (5).
But Giolito remained on the free agent market nearly one month into the regular season before landing with the Padres, who are pitching superbly despite major upheaval and injury problems in their rotation.
Opening day starter Nick Pivetta went on the injured list last week with a right elbow flexor strain that could keep him out for months, while Joe Musgrove has yet to make his season debut after a slower-than-expected return from Tommy John surgery. Yu Darvish already is out for the season with an elbow injury, and Dylan Cease left last fall for a $210 million free-agent deal with Toronto.
Yet the Padres' team ERA is the second lowest in the majors at 3.22 after they beat Colorado 1-0 on Tuesday night for their 11th victory in 12 games. San Diego (16-7) is even with the back-to-back champion Los Angeles Dodgers for the best record in the majors.
General manager A.J. Preller figured out a way to fit Giolito under his budget even while his team is in ownership transition. The family of late Padres owner Peter Seidler is nearing a sale of the team to billionaire Jose E. Feliciano and his wife, Kwanza Jones.
Giolito will slot immediately into a rotation that currently includes Michael King, Randy Vásquez, Germán Márquez and former Dodgers star Walker Buehler. Right-hander Matt Waldron took a start last week after Pivetta's injury but struggled in a loss to the Angels.
Giolito agreed to a $38.5 million, two-year contract with Boston in January 2024. He will attempt to build on his strong work with the Red Sox in 2025, when he went 9-1 with a 2.26 ERA in 15 starts from June 10 to Aug. 31 after a slower start. Opponents hit .194 (25 for 129) against his changeup and .200 (3 for 15) against his curveball.
He was left off Boston’s postseason roster after experiencing some elbow discomfort in mid-September, but there was no structural damage — something he said was “a small relief in a very unfortunate situation.”
“As it was described to me in layman’s terms, my flexor is very irritated and at this point it’s hard for me to describe,” Giolito said after Game 1 of Boston’s AL Wild Card Series against the New York Yankees. “It’s like weird stuff going on with my bone. It’s one of those things I was told you got to stop throwing and let it calm down.”
Giolito hasn't pitched in the postseason since 2021, when he made his second career playoff appearance for the White Sox.
San Diego transferred right-hander Bryan Hoeing to the 60-day disabled list to make room for Giolito on the 40-man roster.
AP Baseball Writer Jay Cohen contributed to this report.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
FILE - Boston Red Sox pitcher Lucas Giolito reacts after striking out Athletics Lawrence Butler with the bases loaded in the third inning in of a baseball game against the Athletics, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File)
