NBA Defensive Player of the Year 2017: Top Award Candidates, Announcement Date

The 2016-17 NBA Defensive Player of the Year race hasn't garnered as much attention as the heated MVP battle that ensued between Russell Westbrook and James Harden, but it will also feature a wicked one-two finish that should be decided by a slim margin. 

Specifically, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert and Golden State Warriors combo-forward Draymond Green project as the one-two finishers in some capacity when the DPOY hardware is handed out June 26 at the NBA's first awards show.

Not to be forgotten, though, is San Antonio Spurs swingman Kawhi Leonard, who anchored the league's top-ranked defense (100.9 points allowed per 100 possessions) during the regular season. 

With those three names in mind, here's a rundown of the key defensive stats each player posted this past season:

Player	Games	SPG	BPG	Def. Rating	DBPM	DWS
Draymond Green	76	2.0	1.4	99	5.0	5.4
Rudy Gobert	81	0.6	2.6	99	4.5	6.0
Kawhi Leonard	74	1.8	0.7	102	1.5	4.7

Although Leonard absolutely deserves consideration—he is after all "the league's best perimeter defender," according to ESPN.com's Zach Lowe—this is a two-horse race that will feature Gobert and Green jockeying for top billing on ballots across the Association. 

For now, we'll start with the case for Gobert.

Not only did he post the same defensive rating as Green, but he led the league in defensive win shares (6.0), per Basketball Reference. He was also far and away the NBA's premier rim protector, as evidenced by his league-leading 2.6 blocks per game. 

However, his impact spans beyond the pure number of shots he got his hands on. He also altered a staggering number of attempts. To that point, opponents shot 43.9 percent at the rim when Gobert operated as the player's primary defender, according to NBA.com's player-tracking data. 

Green posted an identical mark, but Gobert faced a league-high 10.2 attempts per game at the rim. Green, on the other hand, posted that percentage while facing seven shots a night in the restricted area. 

Thanks to that elite rim protection, the Jazz posted a defensive rating of 100.6 when Gobert was patrolling the paint. When he sat, that mark ballooned to 107.5, which would have nearly equaled the Portland Trail Blazers' 21st-ranked mark (107.8), per the NBA.   

That's what you call a game-changer.

But strange as it may sound, Green's case is even more impressive than the Stifle Tower's, and that's not a knock on Gobert. Rather, it's indicative of just how good Green was during a season that saw him guard all five positions seamlessly en route to leading the NBA in steals per game (2.0) and defensive box score plus/minus (5.0). 

"Rudy is great at what he does, and I think he has changed games," Green said, according to USA Today's Sam Amick. "But I think this is, like you said, a guard-heavy league and being able to switch onto guards and being able to defend one through five, just being able to play no matter who's out there on the floor, and you're not at a disadvantage, I think it helps."

He has a point.

Not only did Green defend the rim at a rate equally as impressive as Gobert—albeit at a slightly lower volume—he also defended the perimeter in brilliant fashion. According to NBA.com's player-tracking data, opponents shot 29.5 percent from three when defended by Green this past season. That mark was 5.6 percent better than the league average. 

As for the on/off impact, the Warriors notched a defensive rating of 98.7 with Green on the floor. When he was forced to the bench, that mark inflated to 113.6. That's a massive 14.9-point differential that stands out compared to Gobert's 6.9-point differential. 

The race should be awfully close, but Green's case is nearly ironclad after he held down the fort for the league's most dominant team.  

Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com unless noted otherwise.