Earlier today, the NBA announced that for the second consecutive season, the San Antonio Spurs‘ Kawhi Leonard won the Defensive Player of the Year award. Coming up just short, once again, was Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors.
While many fans are satisfied with the results, there are others who believe Green deserved the nod for the honor.
When Green was asked if he felt slighted though, he didn't go along with that narrative, at least not this time around.
“I felt robbed last year (because Kawhi played fewer games). I didn't feel robbed this year,” Green said, via Ethan Strauss of ESPN.
RELATED: Kawhi Leonard struggles to contain his excitement after winning DPOY
If you're strictly looking at the raw numbers, Green could be perceived to have an edge over Leonard.
When Draymond was on the floor, the Warriors held their opponents to 12 points less for every 100 possessions. That's a striking defense.
The Spurs finished with the top-rated team defense, and while Leonard was certainly the leader of that unit, his impact on points actually scored per possession is not as high as Green. Draymond also finished the season with more steals and defensive rebounds.
Green shied away from making any controversial statements here, but teammate Klay Thompson was quite blunt with his feelings.
Klay on Draymond not getting DPOY: "We all think it's a snub"
— Ethan Strauss (@SherwoodStrauss) April 18, 2016
Follow Us
Subscribe