#Ballot 2016–17: All-Defense Selections
There are those who believe defense is a lost art in the NBA, but the members of Sixteen’s All-Defense teams leave no doubt that defense is still a vital component to winning.
In an era where offenses are literally exploding around the NBA, it may be more important than ever to be able to put skilled defenders on the floor.
One year ago, the NBA’s best defensive rating belonged to the San Antonio Spurs with a sparkling 96.6 points per 100 possessions allowed. As of the end of this regular season, those same Spurs lead the league once again for the season, but their defensive rating is four points worse at 100.9. In fact, this season’s best defensive rating would have been in a four-way tie for fourth place last season.
With offenses getting better and more efficient across the board and especially more dynamic from three-point range, teams have to be able to keep up on the scoreboard and also get stops all over the floor. As more teams have star players who can be relied on for points, it’s more vital than ever to be able to shut down opposing elite scorers. In one of the most exhilarating seasons we’ve ever seen from an offensive perspective, we’ve also seen some of the most dominant defenders strut their stuff when it matters the most.
That’s where Sixteen Wins A Ring’s All-Defensive teams come in. Nobody is better at stopping opposing stars than these guys, whether it be Andre Roberson and Chris Paul giving point guards and wings nightmares on the perimeter, or Rudy Gobert and Draymond Green snuffing out dreams in the paint.
As you can see, there was very little variation at the center and forward positions among our staff. In fact, we were just two second team votes away from a unanimous front court of Rudy Gobert, Draymond Green and Kawhi Leonard. Chris Paul dominated the backcourt with 17 more voting points than second-place Andre Roberson, which is where the votes got a bit closer and more interesting.
Roberson finished with 29 total votes, just four first place votes ahead of Patrick Beverley and eight total votes ahead of Avery Bradley, both of whom made the second team. DeAndre Jordan was the clear choice for the second team center with three more second-place votes than Anthony Davis and seven votes ahead of Hassan Whiteside.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jimmy Butler round out the second team with one first team and two first team votes respectively, and 11 and 14 voting points.
In spite of a wide range of honorable mentions also receiving votes, only Tony Allen (19 voting points), John Wall (14 voting points) and the aforementioned Anthony Davis scored double-digit points. Among those receiving votes who did not make a team, Kevin Durant, stands as notable. He was well on his way to his first All-Defense nomination before suffering an MCL sprain on March 1 against the Washington Wizards.
As for the front court front-runners, Gobert, Green and Leonard stand alone as the best defenders by far this season. With very little doubt, either Gobert or Green will win Defensive Player of the Year with the other close behind, and Kawhi Leonard coming in a respectable third.
Rudy Gobert has developed tremendously across the board, and his defense has been an absolute game-changer for the Utah Jazz this season. He holds opponents to 12.6 percent worse shooting than their season averages when defending them inside six feet, and holds them to 10.1 percent worse when that range expands out to ten feet. There’s no bigger game-changer inside the defensive paint than Gobert, and his unanimous choice for the first team is well-deserved.
Draymond Green is virtually interchangeable with Gobert for Defensive Player of the Year, and with good reason. Green is uniquely equipped to guard all five positions, and voraciously so. Standing at a diminutive 6-foot-7, Green makes life hell for opponents from the paint, to out beyond the three-point line.
When Green is off the court, the Golden State Warriors post a pedestrian defensive rating of 104.1. When he’s on, that number plummets to a stellar rate of 99.3 points per 100 possessions. There are very few stars who Draymond Green is not equipped to wreak havoc on, and with the exception of Gobert and Leonard, nobody can change a game entirely through defense like he can.
Last but not least among the first team front court is Kawhi Leonard. He’ll probably finish third in Defensive Player of the Year voting, and he’ll also very possibly finish third in MVP voting. Just a couple short years ago, he was considered merely a tremendous athletic stopper, but he’s catapulted into becoming one of the NBA’s most dynamic players and perhaps the premier two-way player the league has to offer.
While Leonard can change a game by shutting down your best player, he can also put a game out of reach with a scoring flurry of his own. He’s set career-highs in virtually every offensive category of note, but he’ll forever be known as a vitally important defender. With his length, quickness and athleticism, he’s virtually unbeatable when he’s locked in. Leonard is the biggest reason the San Antonio Spurs have barely lost a step over the last year after Tim Duncan retired and much of the rest of the team’s core declined due to the ravages of age.
Leonard might not get top billing on the defensive side of the ball this year, but don’t sell him short. He’s still one of the three or four best defenders in the NBA.
With scoring up around the league, it’s remarkable to be able to put forth some of the most dominant defenders the NBA has seen in the past few years on Sixteen’s first and second All-Defense teams. This assortment of defensive stalwarts is a worthy crop of players, and considering the relative youth of many of these nominees, it should be expected to show up on these ballots for years to come.
