The Best Shot-Blocker on Each of the NBA's 30 Teams

The blocked shot is one of the more underrated plays in basketball. It may not be as glamorous as setting up a basket with a beautiful pass, swiping the ball away for a fast-break opportunity or even making a bucket, but that doesn't mean it's not important and exciting in its own right. 

Some players just seem to have a knack for the timing of blocked shots. Then again, it doesn't hurt to be one of the taller players in the NBA. 

Read on to find out which player is the best shot-blocker for each and every team in the NBA. 

While some, like Josh Smith for the Atlanta Hawks and Dwight Howard for the Orlando Magic, are obvious, others are not.

Atlanta Hawks: Josh Smith

Position: Power Forward

Age: 25

Height: 6'9"

Blocks Per Game: 1.6

Josh Smith was the youngest man in NBA history to reach 500 blocks in his career. Then he became the youngest to reach the 1000-block mark. This season was another productive one for the high-flying forward after averaging 1.6 blocks per game and finishing 14th in the league in total rejections with 120.

Boston Celtics: Jermaine O'Neal

Position: Center

Age: 32

Height: 6'11"

Blocks Per Game: 1.3

This is one category that doesn't belong to any of the members of the Big Four in Boston (Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett). The title of block master for the Celtics still has to go with the now-rundown six-time All-Star: Jermaine O'Neal. The former Pacer averaged 1.25 blocks per game in just 18 minutes of action per contest.

Charlotte Bobcats: Tyrus Thomas

Position: Power Forward

Age: 24

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 1.6

In just 21 minutes of game time on average, Tyrus Thomas managed to post an astounding 1.6 blocks per game. This competition wasn't even worth calling a competition as long as the LSU forward with springs for legs was involved.

Chicago Bulls: Taj Gibson

Position: Power Forward

Age: 26

Height: 6'9"

Blocks Per Game: 1.3

Derrick Rose may have the best-looking blocks, and Joakim Noah may get all the recognition as the shot-blocker extraordinaire on the Chicago Bulls, but Taj Gibson is actually the best in this area. In just 21.8 minutes per game, the power forward averaged 1.33 blocks per contest. In Noah's 48 games this past season, he averaged 1.5 blocks per game but needed 32.8 minutes on the court to do so.

Cleveland Cavaliers: Anderson Varejao

Position: Power Forward

Age: 28

Height: 6'11"

Blocks Per Game: 1.2

When Jamario Moon, Christian Eyenga and Ryan Hollins were actually in the mix for the featured spot on this slide, you know the team isn't exactly good at blocking shots. Anderson Varejao was head and shoulders above the rest, but that isn't saying very much.

Dallas Mavericks: Brendan Haywood

Position: Center

Age: 31

Height: 7'0"

Blocks Per Game: 1.0 

Tyson Chandler may have had the best average of blocks per game, but it was only 0.05 higher than Brendan Haywood's despite the fact that Haywood received 9.3 fewer minutes per game on the court. The seven-footer from North Carolina may be a very limited offensive player, but he can still block shots quite well.

Denver Nuggets: Chris Andersen

Position: Center

Age: 33

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 1.3

While Birdman may not be able to jump quite as high as he used to, he can still get up high enough to block quite a few shots. Chris Andersen's 1.3 blocks per game are impressive enough as it is. They only get better though when you realize that Andersen only received an average of 16.3 minutes per game to accumulate those stats.

Detroit Pistons: Ben Wallace

Position: Center

Age: 36

Height: 6'9"

Blocks Per Game: 1.0

A four-time Defensive Player of the Year, Ben Wallace's one real skill left is his nose for blocking shots. The 36-year-old has fallen well off his old pace, but he still manages to turn away over a shot a game while on the floor for just about 22 minutes per contest.

Golden State Warriors: Ekpe Udoh

Position: Power Forward

Age: 24

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 1.5

This one is not even close. Ekpe Udoh blocked 0.6 more shots per game than anyone else on the Golden State Warriors. Finishing second was Andris Biedrins, who played for six more minutes per game.

Houston Rockets: Jordan Hill

Position: Power Forward

Age: 24

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 0.7

Without Yao Ming patrolling the paint for the Houston Rockets, this title is really up for the taking. Jordan Hill can take the crown for the time being as he averaged a decent amount of blocks in minimal playing time last season. Shane Battier gave him some stiff competition, though.

Indiana Pacers: Roy Hibbert

Position: Center

Age: 24

Height: 7'2"

Blocks Per Game: 1.8

Roy Hibbert finished eighth in the NBA with 142 blocks last season, good for 1.8 per game. The young center from Georgetown blew everyone else on his team out of the water with those numbers. Not a single player came close to stealing this spot from Hibbert.

Los Angeles Clippers: DeAndre Jordan

Position: Center

Age: 23

Height: 6'11"

Blocks Per Game: 1.8

Tying Roy Hibbert for eighth in the NBA with 142 blocks was the Los Angeles Clippers' young center named DeAndre Jordan. With a 6'11" frame and fantastic hops, Jordan's blocking stats are only going to improve as he continues to progress at the professional level.

Los Angeles Lakers: Andrew Bynum

Position: Center

Age: 23

Height: 7'0"

Blocks Per Game: 2.0

Although he's more well-known right now for the brutal forearm shiver he delivered to the Dallas Mavericks' J.J. Barea during the embarrassing playoff sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers, Andrew Bynum is still a prolific shot-blocker. The young seven-footer has the potential to be one of the best in the league if he can stay healthy and out of trouble.

Memphis Grizzlies: Marc Gasol

Position: Center

Age: 26

Height: 7'1"

Blocks Per Game: 1.7

Even though his true breakout came at the end of the season and during the postseason, Marc Gasol still showed throughout the year that he was the best at racking up the blocks for the Memphis Grizzlies. The youngish center finished 11th in the league with 136 blocked shots this past season.

Miami Heat: Joel Anthony

Position: Center

Age: 29

Height: 6'9"

Blocks Per Game: 1.2

You may have expected LeBron James and his chase-down, block-from-behind thrillers to appear on here. You may even have expected the high-flying Dwyane Wade and his incredible blocking ability to be the representative.

Don't discredit what Joel Anthony can do on the defensive end of the floor.

He averaged a good bit more blocks per game than anyone else on the defending runners-up despite receiving far less playing time.

Milwaukee Bucks: Andrew Bogut

Position: Center

Age: 26

Height: 7'0"

Blocks Per Game: 2.6

Is there any doubt that the oft-injured Australian center should be the choice here? When healthy, Bogut is one of the absolute best shot-blockers in the league. After all, he finished fourth in total blocked shots this past season despite missing 17 games.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Darko Milicic

Position: Center

Age: 26

Height: 7'0"

Blocks Per Game: 2.0 

If shot-blocking was the only thing David Kahn was looking for when he signed Darko Milicic to a ridiculous $20 million contract during last summer's free-agency extravaganza, then he got what he was looking for. Although that's just about all the major draft bust can do, he can block quite adeptly.

New Jersey Nets: Brook Lopez

Position: Center

Age: 23

Height: 7'0"

Blocks Per Game: 1.5

The first of two Lopezes that you'll find on this list, Brook is definitely the better shot-blocker of the two so far. No one on the New Jersey Nets can really come close to matching his prowess in that respect, seeing as Lopez finished 14th in the league with 120 blocks.

New Orleans Hornets: Emeka Okafor

Position: Center

Age: 28

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 1.8

Emeka Okafor may not be a great scorer by any stretch of the imagination, but he can still block shots with the best of them. Averaging 1.8 per game, the big man totaled 127 rejections on the season, good enough to place him 13th on the leaderboard in that area.

New York Knicks: Amar'e Stoudemire

Position: Power Forward

Age: 28

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 1.9

I toyed with the idea of putting Ronny Turiaf here because of the efficiency with which he blocks shots, but the fact that Amar'e Stoudemire lines up at the power forward position and still blocks shots with such effectiveness pushed him over the edge in my mind. After all, the goggle-wearing Knick did finish sixth in the league with 150 blocks.

Oklahoma City Thunder: Serge Ibaka

Position: Power Forward

Age: 21

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 2.4

The competition for this spot wasn't even close. After all, Serge Ibaka and his 2.4 blocks per game led the entire NBA in total blocks, sending back 198 shots into offensive players' faces. When you lead the league in the category being discussed, I'm pretty sure you belong.

Orlando Magic: Dwight Howard

Position: Center

Age: 25

Height: 6'11"

Blocks Per Game: 2.4

If you've watched Dwight Howard play basketball you will not question this decision at all. The three-time reigning Defensive Player of the Year had the third-most rejections in the NBA last season.

Philadelphia 76ers: Elton Brand

Position: Power Forward

Age: 32

Height: 6'9"

Blocks Per Game: 1.3

Amazingly, and somewhat unexpectedly, Elton Brand managed to lead the 2010-2011 Philadelphia 76ers in points, rebounds and blocked shots. While the first two categories were pretty close, no one even came close to matching Brand's 106 blocked shots.

Phoenix Suns: Robin Lopez

Position: Center

Age: 23

Height: 7'0"

Blocks Per Game: 0.7

Both Marcin Gortat and Channing Frye averaged more blocks per game than Robin Lopez, but the Stanford product was by far the most efficient of the three. Lopez only received 14.8 minutes per game on the court.

If you prorated his stats to Gortat's playing time, he'd outrank him 1.35 to 1.28. Doing the same with Frye's playing time, Lopez would win 1.49 to 1.03.

Portland Trail Blazers: Marcus Camby

Position: Power Forward

Age: 37

Height: 6'11"

Blocks Per Game: 1.6

Marcus Camby may be on his way toward becoming AARP-eligible, but he can still jump up in the air and time his leap well enough to swat back an offensive player's shot. The veteran power forward was on the court for fewer than 30 minutes per game but still averaged 1.6 blocks per contest.

Sacramento Kings: Samuel Dalembert

Position: Center

Age: 30

Height: 6'11"

Blocks Per Game: 1.5

Samuel Dalembert was a large part (both literally and figuratively) of the Sacramento Kings frontcourt logjam last season. In 24.2 minutes per game, the former Seton Hall Pirate tallied enough blocks to finish 16th in the entire NBA.

San Antonio Spurs: Tim Duncan

Position: Center

Age: 35

Height: 6'11"

Blocks Per Game: 1.9

Tim Duncan may definitely be on the decline, but the 35-year-old center can still block more than his fair share of shots. Averaging 1.9 blocks per game, Duncan finished the season with a total of 146 rejections, good enough to place seventh in the NBA.

Toronto Raptors: Amir Johnson

Position: Power Forward

Age: 24

Height: 6'9"

Blocks Per Game: 1.2

A 6'9" power forward with no college education, Amir Johnson didn't need to be taught how to block shots. With a great nose for stuffing the opposition, Johnson averaged 1.2 blocks per game—more than any other Raptor—and did so with an average of just 25.7 minutes per game on the court.

Utah Jazz: Al Jefferson

Position: Center

Age: 26

Height: 6'10"

Blocks Per Game: 1.9

During his huge 2010-2011 campaign, Al Jefferson managed to block an average of 1.9 shots per game while staying on the court for 35.9 minutes per game. The 6'10" center had never averaged more blocks per game during his career and finished fifth in the NBA in total blocked shots.

Washington Wizards: JaVale McGee

Position: Center

Age: 23

Height: 7'0"

Blocks Per Game: 2.4

JaVale McGee, or "Pierre," as he now wants to be called, has an incredible wingspan and great jumping ability. The young big man averaged 2.4 blocks per game last season with 27.8 minutes of playing time in an average contest. Only Serge Ibaka turned away more shots last season.

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Adam Fromal is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer. Follow him on Twitter.

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