The Best Defensive Player award is an important one every year. In general, insiders have a natural advantage when competing for the award. They can grab more rebounds and create more blocks. Gobert and Alphabet Brother are examples of this.
But the selection of the best defensive player this season is not the same. Point guard Stey from the Celtics is far ahead of the votes and currently has 14 1st, 8 2nd and 4 3rd votes, doubling the total score of 98 to 2nd place Gobert. All indications are that Smart is likely to be selected as the best defensive player of the season. If elected, he would be the first player since Payton to be named a point guard in the 1995-96 season, with a gap of 26 years.
Excellent scrambling ability, strong ability to change defense
Smart has averaged close to 12+4+6 per game this season. Shooting 42 percent from the field, Smart can maintain a certain level of performance on the offensive end, delivering 1.7 steals and 0.3 blocks per game. He's averaging in the top 5 in the NBA in terms of steals per game. Smart has been with defense as the biggest label since entering the NBA, and his defense is very aggressive and full of aggression. Both single-player defense and assistant defense Smart do a good job, smart although a point guard but he is very strong, has a very good confrontation. One-on-one defense is not a problem for most outside players, and it is even possible to switch to small forwards.
Smart defends with a lot of cunning and is very good at making dribbles and bumpers. Smart's defensive anticipation is already at a fever pitch, and he can often stand in a reasonable position to create an offensive foul on his opponent. Smart still has a lot of defensive influence that can't be expressed in data, such as when defending a counterattack, Smart can destroy the opponent's ball, not only curbing the opponent's momentum but also leaving time for his own side to prepare. For example, Smart likes to use small actions to engage the opponent's mentality, disrupt the opponent's rhythm, and even make the opponent's mentality unbalanced. This kind of player opponent is particularly annoying, but teammates will like it very much.
The team is defensively efficient and shares the pressure for teammates
A player with excellent defensive prowess, a positive attitude and a very cunning attitude does deserve the best defensive player. Smart's selection as the best defensive player also has some team factors, as the Greenshirts are the most defensively efficient team in the NBA this season. This is also what sets him apart from other competitors, and Gobert and Alphabet Brother have not pulled the team's defensive efficiency to a more considerable level. Smart is the GreenShirts' number one defensive tip, taking on a lot of dirty work, thanks to his presence Tatum and Brown having more options on the defensive end, allowing him to save physical strength to focus on offense. It can be seen that Smart's defense has helped the team tremendously at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends.
Outside defenders deserve more attention
In today's small-ball leagues, the defensive level of outside players is gradually improving, and their influence is getting bigger and bigger. In the future, the NBA should not only focus on the inside line when selecting the best defensive players, but also the outside players should also get more attention. Smart has a good chance of becoming the first defender of the 21st century to be elected to DPOY, which is a remarkable achievement, thanks to Smart's presence Celtic will also be on the offensive to the championship. Dear readers, how do you evaluate Smart's defensive performance this season? Feel free to leave a comment in the comments section below the article.