Draymond: Nobody has solidified their case for DPOY
Draymond Green, once a front-runner for this season's NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, believes he's still in the conversation despite missing more than two months of action.
"I don't know what league everybody else has been watching, but I have not seen anyone solidify themselves as Defensive Player of the Year - unless you're just going by, 'Oh, this guy played this amount of games and their team had this record,'" he said Monday, according to Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area.
"When I look around the league, Mikal Bridges has been really good defensively and Jaren Jackson has picked it up defensively," Green added. "I don't think anyone has solidified themselves. And I think we can all agree, through 34 games, it was already solidified."
The Golden State Warriors star can reach a maximum of 48 appearances if he suits up for all of the Warriors' remaining regular-season contests. The fewest games played by a Defensive Player of the Year winner over a full NBA campaign is 56 by Rudy Gobert in 2017-18.
Green is averaging 7.8 points, 7.5 boards, 7.3 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.2 blocks across 35 games this season. His versatility and vocal leadership have been an instrumental part of Golden State's third-ranked defense.
With Green on the floor, the Warriors only give up 101.5 points per 100 possessions. The four-time All-Star is tied for the team lead in charges drawn (7), fourth in contested shots (307), and fifth in both deflections (85) and loose balls recovered (35).
Meanwhile, Bridges and Jackson have each made 68 appearances.
Bridges is averaging 13.7 points, 4.4 boards, and 1.2 steals per contest. The Phoenix Suns forward is tied for fifth in the league in net rating (plus-10.0) and 13th in defensive win shares (3.2).
Jackson leads all players with 2.2 blocks per contest. The Memphis Grizzlies forward sits sixth in total contested shots (682).