21 players the NBA repeatedly snubbed for Defensive Player of the Year

Snubbed Defensive Player #6: Patrick Ewing

Between his college career at Georgetown and his NBA career, primarily with the New York Knicks, center, Patrick Ewing established himself as one of the greatest shot blockers of all time. That didn’t translate into him winning a DPOY, however. For five consecutive seasons, Ewing averaged at least 3 blocks per game, but his best season came during 1989-90.

He averaged a staggering 4.0 blocks to go along with 1 steal and 8.0 defensive rebounds per game. He also finished fifth in defensive win shares that season but lost the award to Dennis Rodman. Ewing faced tough competition for the award, even when he led the NBA in defensive win shares during 1992–93, 1993–94, and 1995–96.

Ironically, despite that, he was arguably a defensive tier below Olajuwon, Mutombo, David Robinson, and Alonzo Mourning. This is considering that those four players won a total of nine DPOY awards. Unluckily for Ewing, their primes coincide with his, resulting in him competing with each. As a result, Ewing was left without an award.