Jaren Jackson Jr. named 2022-23 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year
This season, Jaren Jackson Jr. of Memphis had the highest number of blocked shots per game and the best defensive statistics at the rim compared to any other player.
And voters noticed.
On Monday night, the Memphis big man was declared the winner of the 2022-23 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year, thereby receiving the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy. He is the second player to win this award in a Grizzlies’ uniform, joining Marc Gasol, who achieved this feat a decade ago.
The 2022-23 #KiaDPOY is… Jaren Jackson Jr!#NBAAwards pic.twitter.com/7a2CXbPY6S
— NBA (@NBA) April 17, 2023
This season, Jackson topped the league with an average of 3.0 blocks per game, an improvement from his fifth-place finish in the previous season’s defensive player of the year voting. He received 56 first-place votes and 391 voting points, outscoring the second-placed Brook Lopez from the Milwaukee Bucks, who secured 31 first-place votes and 309 points. Meanwhile, Evan Mobley from Cleveland, in his second NBA season, came in third with eight first-place votes and a total of 101 points.
“Team defense significantly aids us. It has a far-reaching impact,” Jackson announced on the TNT broadcast that presented the award.
Jackson’s allowed shooting percentage at the rim — 46.9% — was the league’s best among those who defended at least 300 shots there. This significantly contributed to Memphis’ achievement of the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
“Without a doubt, it’s a no-brainer, JJ is definitely the defensive player of the year,” said Taylor Jenkins, the coach of Memphis, earlier this month.
Jenkins could delve into as much analytics as he desires, but the tale is also plainly seen in a simple observation. Jackson Jr. was not prepared for the season’s commencement as his right foot, which had undergone surgical repair, required additional recovery duration.
Memphis, while awaiting Jackson Jr.’s readiness, was admittedly not stellar on defense.
Kia Defensive Player of the Year, Jackson Jr., joins ‘Inside the NBA’.
“Jenkins said, ‘He was absent for the first 15 games of the year, during which we performed poorly in defense. However, when he rejoined the lineup, the situation improved significantly.'”
Jackson credited Jenkins and the Grizzlies’ staff significantly for their role in his winning of the award.
Jackson said, “They’ve given me the confidence to be assertively offensive, but truly liberated me defensively to freely do as I please.”
In his 15 NBA seasons, Lopez, who was the runner-up, had never been this close to receiving a major individual award.
Despite his consistent record as a shot-blocker, averaging 1.8 blocks per game throughout his career, Lopez had never been a significant contender for the DPOY award until now. In 2020, he secured the 10th position in the voting, the same season his Milwaukee teammate, Giannis Antetokounmpo, won both the DPOY and MVP awards.
This season, Lopez set a personal and league record by blocking 193 shots. He also contested 17.5 shots per game, the highest number in the league by a significant margin.
DPOYYYYY @jarenjacksonjr pic.twitter.com/SSVBCYmcKJ
— Memphis Grizzlies (@memgrizz) April 17, 2023
Draymond Green from Golden State was fourth, trailed by Bam Adebayo from Miami in fifth place. Antetokounmpo was sixth, while O.G. Anunoby from Toronto and Jrue Holiday from Milwaukee shared the seventh spot. Joel Embiid from Philadelphia and Nic Claxton from Brooklyn tied for ninth. Alex Caruso from Chicago came in 11th, and Jimmy Butler from Miami rounded out the list in 12th place.
This season, the league announced its first major individual award.
Three more awards are scheduled to be revealed later this week — Clutch Player (Butler, Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan or Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox) is coming Tuesday, Coach of the Year (Sacramento’s Mike Brown, Oklahoma City’s Mark Daigneault or Boston’s Joe Mazzulla) will be announced Wednesday and Sixth Man of the Year (Boston’s Malcolm Brogdon, Milwaukee’s Bobby Portis Jr. or New York’s Immanuel Quickley) will be revealed Thursday.
VOTING RESULTS
THE HAKEEM OLAJUWON TROPHY
Hakeem Olajuwon’s Hall of Fame career is defined by his defensive dominance, which earned him the Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year award twice, along with nine selections for the NBA All-Defensive Team. He holds the league’s record for the most blocked shots and is ninth in steals. His illustrious career also includes two NBA championships, 12 NBA All-Star selections, a league MVP title, two NBA Finals MVP awards, and 12 All-NBA Team selections. He is honored in both the NBA’s 50th and 75th Anniversary Teams. The trophy symbolizing this accomplishment depicts a player in a classic defensive stance, with one hand raised and the other lowered, knees bent and ready for action.
