Who’s Leading the Odds for this Year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year

The leading candidates for this year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award are Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz and Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors Gobert is the favorite to win the award, according to oddsmakers, but Green is a close second.

Who’s leading the odds for this year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year?

The National Basketball Association (NBA) Defensive Player of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given to the best Defensive Player of the regular season The winner is selected by a panel of 124 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada, each of whom casts a vote for first, second and third place selections. Each first-place vote is worth five points, each second-place vote is worth three points, and each third-place vote is worth one point. The player with the highest point total, regardless of the number of first-place votes, wins the award.

Since its inception, the award has been given to 19 different players. Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace have each won the award a record four times; Mutombo is also the only player to have won the award in four consecutive seasons (1997–98 through 2000–01). Alvin Robertson, Mark Eaton Dennis Rodman and Hakeem Olajuwon have all won the award twice. Olajuwon was also named NBA MVP in 1994, making him one of only three players who have been named both defensive player of the Year and Most Valuable Player (MVP) in their careers. Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kevin Garnett and Joakim Noah are the only Defensive Players of the Year who have also been selected to an All-NBA team in their careers; Abdul-Jabbar had additionally been named NBA Finals MVP while Garnett had also been selected as NBA Most Valuable Player

In overviews published at CBS Sports during previous year’s offseasons (running from 2012–13 to 2020–21), two different players were identified as leading contenders for that season’s Defensive Player of the year: Rudy Gobert in 2017–18 and 2019–20 while Giannis Antetokounmpo was so identified before ultimately winning it in 2018–19 and 2020–21 .specific seasons where more than one player was identified as leading contender are marked with an asterisk (*).

Why they are leading the odds

## Odds are current as of December 18th

As the NBA season is now more than a quarter of the way done, some players have put themselves in prime position to win Defensive Player of the Year.

Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz is one player who has been playing at an elite level on both ends of the floor. He leads the league in blocks per game (2.8), and is second in rebounds per game (13.9). His defensive rating of 101 is also second in the league. It’s no surprise that he has the best odds to win Defensive Player of the Year at +200.

Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers is another leading candidate for Defensive Player of the Year. He is third in blocks per game (2.5), and is eighth in rebounds per game (11.3). His defensive rating of 103 is also sixth in the league. His odds to win Defensive Player of the award are +325, which puts him second behind only Gobert.

Last year’s winner, Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors rounds out the top three favorites to take home Defensive Player of the Year honors this season. He isn’t putting up quite the same numbers as he did last season when he won the award, but he is still one of the best defenders in the league. His defensive rating of 105 is good for fourth in the league, and he also adds 1.4 steals per game. His odds to win are +700, which puts him tied for third with Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers

What makes them the favorite

The National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Defensive Player of the Year Award is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1982–83 NBA season to the best defensive player of the regular season The winner is selected by a panel of 124 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada, each of whom casts a vote for first, second and third place selections. Each first-place vote is worth five points, each second-place vote is worth three points, and each third-place vote is worth one point. The player with the highest point total, regardless of the number of first-place votes, wins the award.

As of June 2019, Ben Simmons and Rudy Gobert are leading the odds to take home the title this year. Here’s what makes them the favorites:

Ben Simmons:
-Was named to the 2018–19 NBA All-Defensive First Team, making him just the sixth player in NBA history to be named to an All-Defensive team in each of his first two seasons.
-Averaged 2 steals and 1 block per game during the 2018–19 season.
-His 6’10” frame allows him to guard multiple positions effectively.

Rudy Gobert:
-Was named to both the 2018–19 All-NBA First Team and the 2018–19 NBA All-Defensive First Team, making him just the seventh player in NBA history to receive both honors in the same season.
-Averaged 2.3 blocks per game during the 2018–19 season, which was good for second in the NBA.
-At 7’1″, he is one of the tallest players in the league and uses his size and length to his advantage on defense.

Who are the other contenders

Other contenders for the award include Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia
76ers, and Deandre Ayton of the Phoenix Suns

Why they are not the favorite

Many people have oddsmakers have the favorite to win this year’s Defensive Player of the Year. But there are a few reasons why they may not be the favorite.

First, they may not be on a team that is considered to be one of the best Defensive Teams in the league. This is important because voters often consider team performance when deciding who to award individual honors. Second, they may not have put up exceptional defensive statistics in previous years. This is important because voters often give more weight to recent performance when making their decisions. Finally, they may not be considered to be the best player on their own team’s defense. This is important because voters often give more weight to players who are considered to be leaders on their teams.

What the voters are looking for

The voters for the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award are looking for a player who is a standout defender on one of the league’s best teams. They also take into account individual defensive stats, like blocks and steals.

Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns is one of the leading candidates for this year’s award. He ranks first in the NBA in blocks per game, and is also averaging nearly two steals per game. His team is also near the top of the league in defensive rating.

Another leading candidate is Indiana Pacers forward Myles Turner. Turner ranks second in the NBA in blocks per game, and is also averaging nearly two steals per game. His team is also near the top of the league in defensive rating.

What the stats say

There is no doubt that the 2020 NBA Defensive Player of the Year will be a close race. Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks have been the frontrunners throughout the season, but there are several other contenders who could take home the award.

Let’s take a look at the numbers to see who has the best chance of being named this year’s Defensive Player of the Year.

Gobert is averaging 2.3 blocks per game, which is just ahead of Antetokounmpo’s 2.2 blocks per game. Gobert also has a higher defensive rating than Antetokounmpo, meaning that he is more effective at preventing points when he is on the court. However, Antetokounmpo has a higher steal percentage than Gobert, meaning that he is more likely to generate turnovers.

Based on these numbers, it seems like Gobert and Antetokounmpo are both strong contenders for the award. However, there are several other players who could make a case for themselves as well.

Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers is averaging 2.1 blocks per game and has a defensive rating of 103.4, meaning that he is very effective at protecting his team’s basket. Ben Simmons of the 76ers is also a strong contender, as he is averaging 1.8 steals per game and has a defensive rating of 101.9. Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers rounds out the top five in blocks per game, averaging 2.0 per contest.

In terms of pure defense, it seems like Gobert and Antetokounmpo are still in the lead. However, Simmons and Embiid both have strong numbers in other categories and could make a case for themselves as well. It will be interesting to see how this award shakes out in 2020!

What the experts are saying

The National Basketball Association (NBA) Defensive Player of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1982–83 NBA season to the best defensive player of the Regular Season The winner is selected by a panel of 124 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada, each of whom casts a vote for first, second and third place selections. Each first-place vote is worth five points, each second-place vote is worth three points, and each third-place vote is worth one point. The player with the highest point total, regardless of the number of first-place votes, wins the award.

Since its inception, the award has been given to 27 different players. Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace have each won the award a record four times. Dwight Howard is the only player to have won the award in three consecutive seasons. Sidney Moncrief, Hakeem Olajuwon and Alonzo Mourning are the only other players to have won it in back-to-back years. Michael Jordan Gary Payton and Rudy Tomjanovich are the only players who have won both the Defensive Player of the Year Award and (during their playing careers) either an NBA Most Valuable Player Award or NBA Finals Most Valuable Player award Jordan was also named Defensive Player of the Year in 1988 before winning his first MVP later that year or either MVP or Finals MVP Awards In Olajuwon’s case, he is also one of only two players to win two of those awards in conjunction with being named Defensive Player of Year—the other such player being just never has happened before but it really looks like Draymond Green has a chance this year

According to experts, Green has been one of – if not THE best – defensive player(s) in 2020…

What the oddsmakers are saying

According to oddsmakers, Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is the favorite to win this year’s Defensive Player of the year award The “Greek Freak” is listed at -155 odds, meaning you would need to bet $155 to win $100.

Second on the list is last year’s winner Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz who has +325 odds. Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (+650), Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving (+950), and Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (+950) round out the top five.

Odds as of October 9, 2019

Who has the best chance to win

Just because someone is the best player on the defensive end of the floor, doesn’t mean they’ll be in contention for the Defensive Player of the Year award There are a number of factors that go into who has the best chance to take home the hardware, including which team they play for and how much media attention they receive. With that said, here are a few players who have a realistic chance to win this year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year award