Marc Gasol Named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year

No surprise here — the NBA confirmed that Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol is the L’s top defender this season. The press release has the voting results: “Gasol received 212 of a possible 1,089 points, including 30 first-place votes, from a panel of 121 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. Miami’s LeBron James (149 points, 18 first-place votes) and Oklahoma City’s Serge Ibaka (122 points, 14 first-place votes) finished second and third, respectively. Players were awarded five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote received. Gasol, one of only six players to average at least 1.5 blocks (1.7 bpg) and 1.0 steals (1.0 spg), led a Grizzlies defense that allowed a league-low 88.7 ppg during the regular season. According to NBA.com/Stats, Gasol’s +5.4 score differential ranked second among NBA centers; additionally, Memphis enjoyed a +7.5 score differential when Gasol was on the court compared with -3.9 when he was on the bench.”