1.) Potential competition
To be clear, it’s not as if the competition for Defensive Player of the Year outside of Anthony Davis is non-existent. In fact, the field is packed with deserving candidates who have made just as big of a defensive impact for their respective teams.
Let’s run down the list of potential competition and see how they stack up against the Lakers big man.
- Rudy Gobert
- 8th in DEFRTG, 4th in DWS, 7th total blocks & BPG, 8th in DBPM
- Joel Embiid
- 7th in DEFRTG, 13th in DWS, 23rd total blocks, 16th BPG, not in top 20 of DBPM
- Giannis Antetokounmpo
- 1st in DEFRTG, 1st in DWS, 13th total blocks, 18th in BPG, 4th in DBPM
- Jonathon Isaac
- 12th in DEFRTG, 11th in DWS, 2nd total blocks & BPG, 2nd in DBPM
- Ben Simmons
- 15th in DEFRTG, 6th in DWS, 1st in total steals & SPG, 19th in DBPM
Each of these players have one, maybe two defensive stats that they rank higher than Davis at, but none of them are ranked in the top-ten of nearly every single defensive statistical category like he is. No matter how you look at it, whether it be through advanced metrics, or the eye test, Davis is flat out a better defender than his fellow potential nominees.
However, taking everything into account, Davis’ biggest competition for DPOY should unquestionably be Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Greek Freak ranks just as well as Davis in almost every defensive metric, and has been just as big of a factor for the Buck’s defense as Davis has been to the Lakers’.
At the end of that day, Davis has everything going for him in terms of DPOY consideration. He has the narrative, team success, and statistics backing up his contributions. He’s playing for one of the biggest markets in Los Angeles, is constantly making highlight plays, and is one of the most versatile defensive big men in the league. If that isn’t enough to win DPOY, then what is?