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| | Wednesday, March 29 | |||||
Last week, we offered up our 10 candidates for the top defensive player and you chimed in. Here is the poll and some of the better comments below.
It has to be Jason Kidd. His D is what makes things happen on both ends of the court for the Suns. Starting with his
rebounding, how many other point guards average more than seven boards a game. Come to think of it do any small forwards? He is always fighting for the ball, which is why he gets as many steals as he does and is just passionate on the defensive end! He might not get everybody's vote, as Shaq is playing so well, but he deserves to win the poll for his sheer aggression and determination.
I think it's unfair to give the "Best Defensive Player" award to a center. Although they are great at what they do, Shaq, Zo, and Mutombo have much less space to defend than guards like Eddie Jones, Gary Payton or Jason Kidd. This year, I think the award would have to go to Jones. When a guy leads the league in steals, it shows that he either has a.) the great skills and aggressive attitude it requires to take the ball away from the likes of Jason Williams or Kobe Bryant; or b.) has earned the respect from the officials to not call "close fouls." I think Jones is more of (a) than he is (b). By the way, it would be nice to see the average ratio of assist/turnover of opposing players for each of these guys.
Shaq has gone back to the days when he first entered the league with Orlando. He has been a tough force in the middle and is either blocking shots or forcing people to alter them. He's doing this without getting into foul trouble as well!
What about Kobe Bryant? He has been the main reason the Lakers defense has been so strong. He can defend the perimeter and is smart enough to funnel his man to the shot blockers inside. He always defends the opponents' best shooter and is starting to look like ... dare I say ... Michael Cooper.
Pippen is the best defender in the league, plain and simple. The man has come onto a scoring-minded team, in a scoring-minded city, and made them all believe and sell out on the defensive end. He has proved that being a 20 point-per-game player is not as important as playing an all-around game on both ends of the court. Being the defensive catalyst on the best defensive team in the league alone should put him in the top few on any list!
I think because of Kevin Garnett's versatility and youth, he will only get better as a defender. He might not be the best right now, but in a couple of years watch out. I think he is still learning, and will eat the other new young fellas for lunch.
Tim Duncan No. 1! Anyone who says that Duncan is not as good a defensive player as anyone else in the league probably isn't looking for the right attributes. Attracting attention by blocking a shot as hard as you can so that it ends up in the stands and then flexing your muscles and screaming with a wanna-be tough-guy expression on your face doesn't mean you did anything except give your opponent the ball back.
Gary Payton is not only the best defensive player in the NBA, but he is the best point guard in the NBA. Payton is a true leader on and off the court. If he were to play in the big market cities such as New York and L.A. he would have been the MVP the last three seasons. Payton is a tenacious defender and never gives up on either end of the court. At 31, he still has the juices flowing and has showed no signs of letting up. He, hopefully, will stay in Seattle the remainder of his career and with some key acquisitions, most important a true center and two-guard, the Sonics will be NBA champs before he decides to call it quits. He is the best!
There is no question Shaq is the most dominating force at both ends of the floor. Others are trying to play his stats down by commenting that he is on a team with all those other stars. Exactly! He has to share his numbers with Kobe and Glen Rice, while others in the league put up numbers simply because they have no other. That makes Shaq look even better. Without Kobe and Rice, the Lakers would not be as good, but Shaq's numbers would be even greater. He is the most feared man in the league at both ends, and other teams consistently try to find answers to a problem that simply seems impossible to solve.
I feel that Zo is the best player in the league. His defensive intensity is incredible. He is undersized in many matchups at the center position yet he plays with heart. This year he is playing under control and has put forth MVP effort. Blocked shoots, minutes played, and defensive intensity, Zo is the man.
Scottie Pippen is definitely the premier defender of this league and has been for the last decade. His team, the Trail Blazers, is the best defensive team in this league, and this is greatly due to the addition of Pippen. Most small forwards stick to their man but Scottie roams the court and guards three different positions all at once, creating disorder in the opposing team offense night in and night out. Who can forget his last championship season with the Bulls when he almost singlehandedly held the Jazz to the lowest offensive output in Finals history.
Kevin Garnett deserves the honor of Defensive Player of the Year. He is 6-11 and very agile so he can guard anyone from Shaq and Alonzo Mourning to Grant Hill and Scottie Pippen. He averages more than 10 boards a game, nearly two blocks, and lots of steals. Garnett is a great asset to the Timberwolves on both ends of the floor. Even if he takes the shot on the offensive end, he'll race back to the defensive end and be ready to contest the shot of any player, no matter what position, on a fast break. Also, Garnett's great quickness and extremely high vertical make him a valuable and key player on any team.
I believe Eddie Jones should be picked for the award. I say this not just because he leads the league in steals, but he can stop people from multiple positions on the floor. He can defend against point guards, shooting guards and small forwards. You can't say that about any other player in the NBA. Eddie is a guy who has improved his D, and I think he should be honored for that.
Shaq isn't getting near the credit he deserves for his defensive skills. His blocked shots are at a career high, and he is playing outstanding team defense, which is why the Lakers are winning. When Michael Jordan took his defensive game up a notch, he took the Bulls up a level to a championship team. Look for Shaq to do the same for L.A. He moves his feet better than any big man in the game and is always in the correct location on the court to help his team defend. Quit knocking the big fella and enjoy, he is a great one, and his free throws are getting pretty good as well. Lakers will be the 2000 champs, you wait and see.
If it wasn't for Mutombo, the Hawks would get beat by 25 every single game. He needs to come West and play for Phoenix, where they don't need his scoring, just defense with rebounding and shot blocking. Mutombo deserves the award.
I saw Karl Malone shut down Tim Duncan three times in a row down the stretch in a critical game with the Spurs. Malone always shuts down David Robinson, and I have seen him play some pretty good open-court defense against Pippen. It is just not fashionable to like Malone anymore, but there is no better player in the league.
Looking from a pure defensive point of view, I gotta say Shaq is the Defensive Player of the Year. Just look at the numbers; he is second in rebounding, and third in blocked shots. He also has played every single game -- unlike Duncan, Mourning or Mutombo. His mere presence creates so much havoc in the post. Hands down, he is the my choice for Defensive Player of the Year.
As much as I love Tim Duncan, you left out the Spurs' real defensive force, David Robinson. While Duncan is excellent at help defense, the Admiral is the anchor in the middle. He was as valuable on the defensive end as Duncan was on offense in bringing San Antonio its first title. He closed down the post in virtually every playoff game down the stretch, forcing opponents to take almost nothing but contested jump shots -- a big reason the Spurs went 15-2 in the postseason and won every close game.
I was going to vote for Eddie Jones, but I changed my mind in favor of Shaq. Why? Because I never in my life (I'm 32) have seen a center dominate the league like O'Neal. Mourning may get a few more blocks but Shaq rebounds better and who would you rather have as an intimidating presence in the middle? No center in the league can score much against him and the way Phil Jackson is coaching his guards (especially Kobe) to force the player they are guarding to the middle where the big man dwells is causing a lot of headaches for even the elite guards. A couple weeks back in Orlando, Shaq makes a quick steal on an inbounds pass in the final seconds of regulation. His subsequent dunk forces overtime, where he dominates as the Lakers prevail again. Centers just aren't supposed to do things like that. Shaq is a freak -- MVP, Best Defensive Player, World Champion. Shaq deserves it all.
| ALSO SEE NBA Decision 2000: Lunch-pail player NBA Decision 2000: Defenders NBA Decision 2000 Results: It's Shaq | |||||