NBA: Top 10 Candidates For Defensive Player Of The Year Award In 2016-17

As the 2016-17 NBA season approaches, here’s a look at the top 10 candidates for the Defensive Player of the Year Award.

Playoff series can be taken over by superstars, but most of the time, NBA championships are won and lost on defense.

Of the last 30 teams to reach the NBA Finals, 25 of them ranked in the top-10 for defensive efficiency, and in that 15-year span, most of the other five were right on the cusp of that line.

Guards are needed to keep opposing superstar guards out of the paint and off the three-point line, especially since the NBA is loaded with talent at that position. Wing defenders are required to cut off the point of attack and mobile big men are needed to challenge shots at the rim while also contesting threes in the small-ball revolution.

Defense becomes paramount in the playoffs when possessions slow to a grind and fast breaks become harder to engineer, but even during the regular season, a team’s commitment heading into the postseason gives us an inside look at what to expect when it arrives.

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Heading into the 2016-17 campaign, there are plenty of stifling defenders at every position deserving of consideration for the Defensive Player of the Year Award. Here’s a look at the top 10 candidates that could emerge as frontrunners by season’s end.

Honorable Mentions:  Jimmy Butler, Avery Bradley, Chris Paul, Gary Harris, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Tony Allen, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Durant, Andre Drummond

10. Dwight Howard

A three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Dwight Howard winning his fourth award in his age-31 season would be a remarkable (read: unlikely) feat. But as the new defensive anchor of an Atlanta Hawks team the ranked second in defensive rating last year, D-12 might be a dark horse in this category.

Though he’s not as versatile a defender as Al Horford, Howard will help the Hawks on the glass. He averaged 11.8 rebounds per game last season (fourth in the NBA) and has averaged 12.7 rebounds per game for his career (14th all-time).

That alone makes him a tremendous asset to a Hawks team that ranked 28th in rebounding percentage (47.5 percent) and dead last in offensive rebounds (8.3 per game) last year, even if Horford was a better positional defender overall.

Unfortunately, Howard’s game largely depends on his athleticism, and he’s no longer the shot-blocking behemoth he once was (1.6 blocks per game last year). If the Hawks can maintain their elite defense, D-12 might conjure up some DPOY chatter, but playing alongside Paul Millsap might detract from his defensive value too.

9. Paul Millsap

Like Dwight Howard, Paul Millsap’s defensive value and versatility might be overlooked playing alongside another strong interior defender in the starting frontcourt. However, Millsap’s highly underrated defense was not overlooked by All-Defensive Team voters last season, as the 10-year veteran earned Second Team honors and finished fifth in DPOY voting.

As quite possibly the best and most versatile defender on the Atlanta Hawks‘ second rated defense last year, Millsap can swarm pick-and-rolls on the perimeter, rack up steals at an elite rate for a big man and still adequately defend the rim.

Last season, Millsap led the league in defensive win shares (6.0). He also averaged 1.8 steals and 1.7 blocks per game, making him the only player in the league to average such numbers. His ability to guard virtually any position on the floor makes him a taller, albeit less imposing, version of Draymond Green for Atlanta.

Millsap hardly ever gets the credit he deserves on either end of the floor, and with Howard joining the mix, that will likely be the case again in 2016-17, even if the Hawks’ defense remains elite. Millsap won’t win the award, but in terms of merit, he’ll probably deserve a top-five spot in the voting once again.

8. Ricky Rubio

The Minnesota Timberwolves were the NBA’s 27th ranked defense last season, so it’d take a significant leap in 2016-17 for anyone on that roster to warrant consideration for Defensive Player of the Year.

Fortunately, that’s exactly what head coach Tom Thibodeau was brought on to do. With another year under the belts of Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine, the future is certainly bright for Minnesota’s defense. But even with defensive rookie Kris Dunn joining the party at the point guard spot, Ricky Rubio is still this team’s best defender.

It was a crying shame Rubio didn’t earn any All-Defensive honors last season, as his play on that end of the floor continues to be overshadowed by his one glaring flaw — poor shooting — that everyone can’t stop obsessing over.

After averaging 2.1 steals per game last year, and 2.2 per game for his career, Rubio’s hounding defense is often among the elite without ever really getting the credit for it. If he can be the head of the pack for a vastly improved Timberpups defense, who knows? Maybe his value on that end of the floor will finally shine through.

7. DeAndre Jordan

For like the millionth time, DeAndre Jordan is no Bill Russell. But he’s gotten a lot better on the defensive end, finished second in the NBA in both rebounds and blocks last year with 13.8 and 2.3 per game, respectively, and earned NBA All-Defensive First Team honors in the process.

The Los Angeles Clippers have never been known for their defense, with a high-powered offense almost always taking center stage. But if Lob City wants to seriously contend for a title, they may need to be even better than the league’s seventh ranked defense, which they were last year.

Having a healthy Blake Griffin will obviously help the Clippers be their best selves, but on the defensive end, the onus will once again fall on Chris Paul, J.J. Redick and DeAndre Jordan.

Jordan and the Clippers will probably never be elite enough defensively to stir up and real Defensive Player of the Year chatter, but it’s worth noting that D.J. is now one of the premier defenders at the center position in the NBA.

6. Hassan Whiteside

Maybe this is a tad low for the NBA’s reigning leader in blocked shots and defensive rating, but Hassan Whiteside has a lot to prove in the upcoming season now that Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Luol Deng and Joe Johnson are all out the door. Anchoring a top-10 defense with the Miami Heat‘s current hodgepodge of inferior talent will be no easy task.

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If he’s able to lead the Heat to a top-10 defensive ranking, he’ll become a frontrunner for the award. He’s already on people’s radars after averaging 11.8 rebounds (third in the NBA) and 3.7 blocks per game last season, and he earned All-Defensive Second Team honors while finishing third in DPOY voting.

However, the stigma of the Heat being slightly better in defensive rating with him off the court followed him all year long. If he can change that pesky statistical narrative (which, for what it’s worth, has been the case for the last two seasons), Whiteside’s gaudy numbers will make it all too easy for voters to fall back in love with an elite rim-protector for DPOY.

Unfortunately, versatility is the name of the game now and Whiteside will already have his hands full with trying to keep his head on straight and becoming a franchise player for a talent-deprived team. Asking him to also anchor a top-10 defense with very little quality around him on that end is just expecting just too much.

5. Paul George

Other than Kawhi Leonard and LeBron James when he’s locked in, there’s probably not a more stifling two-way small forward than Paul George. With the Indiana Pacers bringing in Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young and Al Jefferson to revamp the offense, PG-13’s lockdown defense on the wing will be vital this year.

Under head Frank Vogel, the Pacers were almost always a top-10 defense. But with him, Roy Hibbert, Lance Stephenson, David West and George Hill long gone now, George is the only remaining member of those stifling defensive teams that made it to the conference finals just a few years ago.

In his triumphant comeback season, PG-13 earned All-Defensive Second Team honors. This year, he’ll need to be even better under a new head coach whose primary focus will be putting points on the scoreboard and pushing the tempo.

Indiana’s defense will need second-year center Myles Turner to take a major step to maintain a top-10 defensive rating, but PG-13 will have to set the example right from the start for the rest of the team as their premier and most versatile defender.

4. Al Horford

Avery Bradley was the member of the Boston Celtics who earned All-Defensive First Team honors last season, and with a boost in playing time, Marcus Smart may not be far behind him. But after ranking fourth in defensive rating last season, Boston’s already elite defense may take another big step with the arrival of Al Horford.

Horford isn’t the superstar-caliber player the Celtics have been trying to acquire with their treasure trove of assets for years now, but he is an idyllic fit on a well-coached team that gets after it on the defensive end.

Though he’s not an elite rim protector (1.5 blocks per game last season), Horford is a tremendous positional defender and a versatile one at that. He’s pretty much the missing link at a position of need who will not only upgrade Boston’s middling offense, but also make their stifling defense downright nightmarish.

At age 30, Horford’s entering the tail-end of his prime. But if the Celtics become one of the NBA’s stingiest defenses, you can be guaranteed the arrival of this big man will garner Horford some votes as the catalyst behind it all.

3. Kawhi Leonard

In terms of pure defensive talent and versatility, the Defensive Player of the Year Award should probably just be a one-on-one competition between Kawhi Leonard and Draymond Green for the next 2-3 years. That’s basically what it’s been for the last two years, after all.

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As quite possibly the best on-ball defender in the league, Leonard’s long arms, baseball mitt hands and high basketball IQ make him the closest thing to Scottie Pippen this league has seen. Between that and his nights shutting down the likes of Kevin Durant, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony, t’s no wonder he’s the two-time reigning Defensive Player of the Year.

As the most intimidating defender on a historically great San Antonio Spurs defense, Leonard going back-to-back was hard to argue. Though Green probably should’ve won in 2014-15 (he had more first place votes), Kawhi leading a defense that only gave up a league-best 96.6 points per 100 possessions in 2015-16 was truly remarkable.

Voter fatigue may limit his reign to two years, especially since the Spurs may have taken a step back on the defensive end with the arrival of Pau Gasol and the departures of Tim Duncan and Boris Diaw. Still, you can never count out the Claw.

2. Draymond Green

At 6’7″, it’s truly remarkable what Draymond Green and his massive wingspan are able to accomplish on a nightly basis. He truly is a one-of-a-kind defender, a walking innovator whose mere presence as a small-ball 4 and 5 has altered the course of NBA history.

Not only can Green make plays and knock down threes on the offensive end, but he’s a tenacious — albeit undersized — rebounder and shot-blocker defensively. His ability to switch screens is what has made the Golden State Warriors‘ defense and small-ball units so deadly over the last two seasons.

Green earned the most first place votes for DPOY in 2014-15, ultimately losing to Kawhi Leonard in total points because a few voters — cough, East coast voters who didn’t stay up often enough to actually watch the West coast Warriors play, cough — didn’t even have him in their top three.

Leonard was more than deserving last season, but perhaps a mixture of voter fatigue and Green anchoring another elite defense that just lost rim protector Andrew Bogut will draw more attention to his status as perhaps the most surprisingly versatile defender the NBA has seen thus far.

After all, how many other 6’7″ guys are capable of averaging 1.4 blocks and 1.5 steals per game while also defending the perimeter and making perfect strips in transition like this?

Voter fatigue doesn’t take long to set in, which may be enough to give Green the edge over Kawhi Leonard in 2016-17.

If he can anchor another top-five defense despite Zaza Pachulia not being a rim protector and despite the Warriors’ loss of bench depth, and if he stops kicking people in the nuts, this two-time DPOY runner-up and two-time All-Defensive First Team selection may finally earn this well-deserved award.

1. Rudy Gobert

Draymond Green and Kawhi Leonard are still probably the two most dominant defenders in the NBA, but 2016-17 may mark the return of the big man for the Defensive Player of the Year Award. Why? Because Rudy Gobert and the Utah Jazz defense are going to make opposing offenses squeamish.

Last season, an epidemic of injuries once again dashed Utah’s playoff hopes, resulting in a 40-42 finish, another trip to the draft lottery and a team defensive rating of 101.6 (eighth in the league).

There’s no doubt that Gobert (21 games), Derrick Favors (20 games), Dante Exum (82 games) missing significant time took a slight toll on Utah’s defense and their playoff hopes in general.

The season before, when the Jazz first plugged Dante Exum into the starting lineup and replaced Enes Kanter with Rudy Gobert at center, Utah had the stingiest defense in the NBA after the trade deadline, smothering opponents to the tune of 94.8 points per 100 possessions.

Obviously that 29-game sample size is impossible to sustain over the course of a full 82-game season, but with the Jazz fully healthy and the addition of a defensive-minded point guard like George Hill, Quin Snyder’s team could very well have the best defense in the NBA this year.

Assuming Gobert and Favors are healthier this season, the Stifle Tower’s shot-blocking prowess and status as the team’s interior anchor will make him the standout performer on a smothering Jazz defense. He’ll get the lion’s share of the credit, which may be enough to launch him past Kawhi and Draymond in the DPOY conversation.

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Last season, Gobert averaged 11.0 rebounds (seventh in the league) and 2.2 blocks per game (third). If he stays healthy and the Jazz take their expected leap back into elite territory on the defensive end, this 24-year-old Frenchman has a very good shot of winning the 2016-17 Defensive Player of the Year Award.