NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award ‘Biased,’ Says Former Champion

Getty Bam Adebayo defends a drive by DeMar DeRozan.

The NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award is, by definition, supposed to be awarded to the best defensive player of the regular season. There’s a severe bias toward the rim defenders, says former Miami Heat player Shane Battier, and that benefits players like Victor Wembanyama or Chet Holmgren.

Battier made a case for the Heat’s Bam Adebayo, who finished third in the DPOY voting, saying on the May 21 episode of “The OGs” that Adebayo doesn’t get more praise because his defense can’t be quantified by gaudy stats like blocks or steals.

“There’s a bias toward guys who are bone-up defenders,” said Battier, who played from 2001-2014, winning rings with the Heat in 2012 and 2013. “The perception now with the league and with the way the rules are — it’s different than when we played — but people don’t get the credit for being able to bone up because: a) you can’t be that physical anymore, right?

“So, if you say, well, he’s a one-on-one defender, well, you really can’t stop anybody anymore. You can slow people down, right?” he said. “So, you don’t get credit, and so that’s why people don’t credit Bam, which I think [they] should because he can literally switch and guard anybody and do a good job, which not a lot of guys can do in these rules, where you can’t be physical.”

On Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller’s show, “The OGs,” Battier spoke on Bam Adebayo’s defense, his lack of attention in the Defensive Player of the Year race and how he doesn’t get more praise because his defense can’t be objectified with gaudy defensive stats like blocks or steals. Battier and Haslem ultimately thought that Wembanyama deserved the award, with Miller on the side of Gobert.

Ultimately, Battier and co-host Udonis Haslem said Wembanyama, the San Antonio Spurs rookie, should’ve won the award. While co-host Mike Miller said the Minnesota Timberwolves‘ Rudy Gobert was the deserved winner this year.

“So, like, I give Bam, like, all the credit in the world for being able to do what he does without allowing him to really use his strength and his speed. But we can see Wemby, we can see Chet, we can see all these shot blockers. Well, they’re affecting shots, so that’s great defense. So, it’s a matter of perception.”

Previous Winners & the Center Bias

Of the last 36 winners, the only non-rim protectors to win were Gary Payton (1995-96), Ron Artest (2003-04), Kawhi Leonard (2014-15, 2015-16) and Marcus Smart (2021-22). That’s 13.8% of the winners.

It’s true that rim protectors are the last line of defense and tend to make the highlight reel. You’ll see Gobert stuff a dunk attempt on “SportsCenter,” but you won’t see a Herbert Jones or Jrue Holiday cut off a passing lane or a drive, leading to a poor offensive decision.

Even the official PR release for Gobert’s 2023-24 award misses the point, first mentioning how the he scored 14.0 points per game on 66.1% shooting. Defense, indeed!

The award is voted on by 124 sportswriters and broadcasters responsible for covering the NBA. There’s an inherent bias in humans, and what is shown in the highlight reels tends to stick in one’s brain.

The Numbers Are Getting Better

Before we had advanced stats and tracking, the only way to statistically give credit to players was through blocks, steals and overall team defense. Now, we can take a look at individual metrics such as defended field goal percentage (by zone as well as overall), deflected passes, box outs and more.

Among players who appeared in at least 50 games, the leader in defended field goal percentage difference (the difference in the shooter’s season average vs when defended by the selected player) was Draymond Green, at minus-6.6. Gobert was second at minus-6.o, with Adebayo at 8th (minus-5.1), Holmgren at 11th (minus-4.4) and Wembanyama at 12th (minus-4.3).

When we filter the results to inside six feet, Gobert (5th), Holmgren (8th) and Wembanyama (11th) all appear. Adebayo was 52nd.

But again, there’s more to defense than that. Box outs are a stat that doesn’t get a lot of mainstream attention, as keeping your man off the glass isn’t as sexy as securing the rebound yourself, but getting the ball back is literally the final act of a successful defensive stand. Adebayo was second in the NBA in box outs per game (3.1), just ahead of Gobert’s 2.8.

Adebayo belongs in the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year, and though he didn’t exactly get snubbed, Battier’s assertion that the voters overlook the type of 1-through-5 guarding that Adebayo does hold a lot of weight.