San Antonio Spurs star Kawhi Leonard has won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year. I think it’s safe to say that Leonard has arrived. Kawhi had 333 votes total, in a very close race over Warriors Draymond Green. Clippers DeAndre Jordan came in third.
Leonard returned from an extended injury-caused absence in mid-January to break hearts on defense the final two-and-a-half months of the season. Below are the points to
1. Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio (37-41-25-333)
2. Draymond Green, Golden State (45-25-17-317)
3. DeAndre Jordan, L.A. Clippers (32-25-26-261)
4. Anthony Davis, New Orleans (11-15-7-107)
5. Rudy Gobert, Utah (2-4-11-33)
6. Andrew Bogut, Golden (0-6-13-31)
7. Tony Allen, Memphis (1-4-12-29)
8. Tim Duncan, San Antonio (1-1-4-12)
9. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Charlotte (0-2-3-9)
10. Jimmy Butler, Chicago (0-2-1-7)
10. Marc Gasol, Memphis (0-2-1-7)
12. Joakim Noah, Chicago (0-1-1-4)
13. LeBron James, Cleveland (0-0-3-3)
13. Trevor Ariza, Houston (0-1-0-3)
15. Patrick Beverley, Houston (0-0-1-1)
15. DeMarre Carroll, Atlanta (0-0-1-1)
15. Nerlens Noel, Philadelphia (0-0-1-1)
15. Chris Paul, L.A. Clippers (0-0-1-1)
15. Hassan Whiteside, Miami (0-0-1-1)
Leonard is the first Spurs player to win the award since David Robinson won in it in 1992.
