Defensive Player of the Year 

Corpuel: Ben Simmons

Regardless of the off-court drama that has transpired over the past few months, Ben Simmons is an incredible defender who I thought should’ve won DPOY last year. He’s one of the few NBA players who can actually guard 1–5, and he’s locked up plenty of touted offensive threats throughout his career. Is he a liability on offense? So far, yes. Is he going to play this year? Likely not for the Sixers, especially after getting kicked out of practice by Doc Rivers. Will this prediction look incredibly foolish in 2–9 months? It’s very possible. Regardless, Ben Simmons is absolutely the best all-around defender in the league and succeeds on defense like few players have in my lifetime. 

Kotelanski: Ben Simmons

Aside from the jokes and memes and the controversy surrounding Simmons’ place in the 76ers organization, it’s hard to deny Simmons is one of the best defenders in the league. Simmons’s agility at his size allows him to defend the best bigs and guards of the league. Regardless of where Simmons ends up this year, he should be very productive as a defender.

Weinstein: Rudy Gobert

Rudy Gobert is someone I would not want to try to shoot a layup over, I’ll tell you that. The man is a block machine and grabs a ton of rebounds. He’s won the award three times, and he’ll take it home again.

Rice: Rudy Gobert

It feels like voter fatigue has to get to Gobert at some point, but it’s just impossible for me to pick someone else as my defensive player of the year. Gobert was a force to be reckoned with last year in the paint, like he has been throughout his career. He racked up a career-high 2.7 blocks per game last year and 13.5 rebounds per game. What fans don’t realize is that when we watch Gobert, we watch one of the best interior defenders in the history of basketball.