SUMMARY
- The NBA recently announced regular season accolade finalists for the 2023-24 campaign.
- Rudy Gobert, Victor Wembanyama, and Bam Adebayo are finalists for the DPOY Award.
The NBA recently witnessed the end of an amazing 2023-24 regular season and there was a very specific takeaway as well. Players are becoming more dominant and creative in the ways they produce numbers. While everybody could predict what Victor Wembanyama was going to do in the league, nobody expected to see Jaime Jaquez Jr. take over the Miami Heat’s offense averaging 15.4 points per game while they didn’t have Jimmy Butler on the floor.
Nobody expected the Oklahoma City Thunder to rise from the ashes after finishing their 2022-23 season outside of the playoff seeds even though Shai-Gilgeous Alexander averaged more points. And it seemed like every team that was expected to have blowout seasons, all ended up competing in the Play-In Tournament this season.
NBA 2023-24 AWARD FINALISTS ANNOUNCED ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/90oUwEaIn8
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 21, 2024
There are a couple of obvious winners for this year’s regular season accolades like Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets for MVP. Wembanyama is the undoubted winner of the Rookie of the Year. The Sixth Man of the Year is most likely going to be Malik Monk of the Sacramento Kings. While Coby White could be named Most Improved Player of the Year. However, the Defensive Player of the Year has minds churning quite a bit.
NBA Defensive Player of the Year Finalists
There are a few names that have played impactful defense for their teams over this past regular season such as Anthony Davis. The LA Lakers struggled to secure wins without him on the floor to anchor their defenses. Chet Holmgren also became a major threat within the paint averaging 2.3 blocks per game tied with Davis. However, neither of these names made the final list. The finalists are:
1. Rudy Gobert – Minnesota Timberwolves
If there is anybody who understands defense the most in the league amongst players, it might be 3x DPOY Winner, Rudy Gobert. Rather than getting into the statistical data of the Wolves player, it is very important to notice what he does on the floor. The Wolves are currently playing against the Phoenix Suns, one of the better offensive teams that’s led by Kevin Durant and Devin Booker.
Rudy Gobert sur KD. pic.twitter.com/guVwhbSam9
— STEPBACK (@StepBackfr) April 20, 2024
In Game 1, it was noticeable how head coach Chris Finch paired Gobert with any other big man on the floor to tackle smaller players within the paint. This also forced the Suns to rely on outside scoring which they don’t necessarily excel in outside of Booker and Durant.
Gobert is also an exceptional rebounder who can take any amount of physicality and walk unscathed. The French native has averaged 2.1 blocks per game with a defensive win share of 0.164 (No.1 in the league). With a fully healthy team playing alongside Gobert, the Wolves topped the point differential charts during the regular season. Gobert also blocked 5.5% of the opposition’s shot attempts this season ranking sixth overall.
2. Bam Adebayo – Miami Heat
Bam Adebayo may come across as a name that has already won the Defensive Player of the Year award, but sadly, he’s never won the title. However, he has been an impactful player for the Heat who has the ability to stretch the floor and produce on offense as well.
While Bam isn’t the tallest defender in the league, he has a great IQ on how to be tactical. Adebayo is also fairly quicker on his feet which allows him to work through an entire player by himself while protecting the paint. This is something taller players find harder to do, especially when they’re over seven feet tall.
Bam Adebayo today:
24 points
6 rebounds
3 assists
10/18 FGFantastic screen pic.twitter.com/eU2OWIBs0r
— Playbook Sports (@PlaybookSN) April 21, 2024
Bam averaged at least one block and a steal consistently throughout the season. He has a defensive win share of 0.140 which ranks amongst the top 10 in the league. Miami has been one of the league’s best defensive teams which they’ve been able to prove time and time again. Also ranked fourth in the league for points differential giving up an average of 108.4 points per game.
3. Victor Wembanyama – San Antonio Spurs
This individual shocked the entire world with his versatility on the floor averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 3.9 assists while putting up 1.2 steals and 3.6 blocks per game. He averaged 10% of the Spurs’ blocked shots this season, which is the highest in the league and second to Manute Bol, who holds the top three highest numbers in that category.
Most games with 5+ PTS, 5+ REB, 5+ AST, and 5+ BLK in a single season:
13 — David Robinson (93-94)
10 — Victor Wembanyama (23-24)
9 — Kirilenko, OlajuwonAll-around talents. pic.twitter.com/2CMnMX9W4j
— WembyMuse (@Wemby_Muse) April 21, 2024
Not every rookie has a successful run like Wembanyama, but he’s made the DPOY conversation extremely tough. He led the league in blocks this season while recording eight games without seven blocks or more. Gobert hasn’t recorded more than seven games like this in his career.
While he is an absolute beast within the paint, Victor also has the ability to defend the perimeter. There aren’t too many defenders who possess the ability to do so. Wembanyama is possibly the only individual who hasn’t had a problem defending players like Nikola Jokic, who can get extremely crafty on offense.
Rudy Gobert has a good chance of winning the 2024 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award
When you compare the three finalists together, Bam Adebayo is the least likely to win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year title. However, an interesting fact is that he has finished second for the DPOY since 2019, which shows that he has great consistency. However, when it comes to numbers, Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama have better individual stats.
Now comes the part of brutal honesty about why Wembanyama may not win the DPOY this season. The facts stand valid about the Spurs being 28th in the league in defense while he’s not playing, and being fourth in the NBA when he’s on the floor. However, this does not add up to why the Spurs continue losing games even while he’s present.
As for Gobert, he is the centerpiece of the best defensive team in the entire league. Basketball is a team sport, and if there is one thing the Wolves and Gobert have done right, it’s playing team defense. This defense has helped them hold the number-one spot in the Western Conference for a very long time in the West. The only reason why Gobert deserves the award over Wembanyama is that the Wolves are winning. They were also like the Spurs not too long ago, but the impact Gobert has had is quite apparent.