Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert made his case for the league’s Defensive Player of the Year award on Thursday.
The three-time Defensive Player of the Year explained that if anyone else had the same impact as him this season, he would be the leader for the award.
Gobert said that although Utah has taken a bit of a step back defensively this season, it is still one of the better defensive units in the NBA.
ESPN’s Malika Andrews asked Gobert if he feels he needs to set the bar higher every year after winning three of the past four Defensive Player of the Year awards, and he responded that it is just human nature for people to take such high level of play for granted.
The three-time All-Star explained that he feels this year people want to see what other guys are doing in order to find “more exciting narratives” instead of choosing him to win the honor again.
This season, Gobert is averaging 15.5 points, 14.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He is also averaging 2.1 blocks and 0.7 steals per game for the Jazz, who currently sit in fifth place in the Western Conference with a 48-32 record.
There is no doubt that Gobert is one of the best defenders in the entire league. Throughout his NBA career, he has averaged 2.2 blocks per game. The big man was selected in the first round of the 2013 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets.
There certainly are several deserving candidates for Defensive Player of the Year, but it’s clear that Gobert feels as though he should win the award again this season.
Earlier on in the year, long before the Memphis Grizzlies dismissed Taylor Jenkins after he…
Guard Ja Morant suited up for the first time since the Memphis Grizzlies fired Taylor…
Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has a compelling case to win this season's MVP…
Big man Clint Capela is in his fifth season playing for the Atlanta Hawks, and…
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith claimed on Wednesday that if his confrontation with Los Angeles Lakers…
Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James recently reflected on the 2006-07 Cleveland Cavaliers and their…