NBA DPOY All Time Winners List By Year, Voting And 2022 Winner Marcus Smart Stats

Know who are the all time winners by year of the DPOY award in the NBA

On April 18, 2022, Boston Celtics player Marcus Smart was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year, the first guard to do so since Gary Payton in 1996. We take a look at the award’s history, all-time winners and Marcus’s season statistics.

Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the 2021-’22 season, which will surely usurp the fact that he was the one who caused Stephen Curry’s injury last March.

NBA DPOY All Time Winners List By Year, Voting And 2021-2022 Winner Marcus Smart Stats

History of NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award and How it is Decided?

Since the 1982–83 NBA season, the Defensive Player of the Year Award has been given to the top defensive player in the regular season by the National Basketball Association (NBA). The winner is chosen by a panel of 124 sportswriters and broadcasters from around the United States and Canada, who individually vote for the first, second, and third place winners.

A first-place vote is worth five points, a second-place vote three points, and a third-place vote one point. The prize is given to the player with the greatest point total, regardless of the amount of first-place votes.

Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace have each received the award four times, setting a new record. Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics was the most recent recipient of the award.

All-time Winner List of NBA Defensive Player of the Year

NBA Defensive Player of the Year 2021-22 Award Results

Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the 2021-’22 season and is the only point guard to win the award in over 25 years, since Gary Payton of the defunct Seattle Sonics won it in 1995-96.

Smart finished first in the trade press selection among a panel of 100 sportswriters with 257 points (including 37 first-place votes), ahead of Phoenix Suns forward Mikal Bridges (202 points, 22 first-place votes) and Utah Jazz centre Rudy Gobert (136 points, 12 first-place votes).

Season Statistics and Importance in Team

With an average of 1.68 steals per game, Smart completed the season fifth in the league in steals. He was also a vital member of a Celtics defence that is often regarded as the finest in the league. The team finished with the top defensive rating (106.2) and the lowest average points allowed per game in the league (104.5).

For the Celtics, Marcus Smart is a key player as he  appeared in all 71 games and had a total of 119 steals. Other metrics that demonstrate his defensive work for the Celtics, such as loose balls recovered with 75 and passes deflected with 206, showed him to be a standout.

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