The 2020-21 NBA ‘Season Just Started’ Awards

TNSJS Defensive Player of the Year: Myles Turner, Indiana Pacers

Also receiving votes: Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis, Rudy Gobert, Bam Adebayo, Larry Nance Jr

When I sent out the ballots to our voting panel, I initially thought that Embiid would be the consensus pick. The Sixers were first in the league in points allowed per 100 possessions prior to the team’s recent Covid outbreak, and Philly lineups with Embiid on the court only allow 101.5 per 100 according to Cleaning the Glass, a monstrous rate that would rank first for all teams in the NBA.

But then I saw Turner’s block numbers and holy moly was I wrong. Raw blocks per game should not be the end-all, be-all for defensive value, as Hassan Whiteside has swatted many a shot due to his reluctance to ever venture outside the interior on defense, and ultimately what’s more important is deterring and bothering shots near the rim rather than getting your hand on them.

Turner is far from a block block-chasing stat monger. He’s eighth overall in defensive miles run per game amongst centers according to NBA.com, and his block rate of 11.6 percent would break the full regular-season record if he continues to deny shots at such a clip. The Pacers sit eighth in points allowed per 100 and vault up to second behind only the Cavs (no really) in all lineups with Turner on the court per CTG.

There are plenty of great candidates for TNSJS DPOY, but right now this is Turner’s award to lose.

Previous years TNSJS winners (2016-2019): Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, Ben Simmons