French midfielder Rudi Gobert wins his third Defensive Player of the Year award

European basketball was once again the main protagonist at the awards ceremony for the top pros during the 2020-21 NBA regular season after Wednesday, French center Rudy Gobert of Utah was named the winner of the Defensive Player of the Year award. Jazz .

The award is his third since joining the NBA, and comes a day after another European player, Serbia’s Nikola Djokic of the Denver Nuggets, was named MVP.

Joubert, 28, became the fourth player to win the award at least three times during his career, joining Dikembe Mutombo, Ben Wallace and Dwight Howard, the only players to have won it at least three times. Mutombo and Wallace won it four times each, and Howard won it three times.

“It’s unbelievable,” Joubert said of winning the award three times. “When I started playing basketball as a kid, if someone told me I was going to be a defensive player of the year, I would never believe them, let alone three times.”

Joubert also said he is grateful to have come so far in a sport he is also passionate about.

The French center finished the regular season with a double-double average of 14.3 points. 13.5 rebounds and 2.7 blocks (best mark as a professional).

Utah began its rise to become one of the elite teams of the Western Conference several years ago thanks to a squad full of defensive players who have linked well with Joubert’s own massive pool of abilities, to which he is also credited with being the first player in the NBA to test positive for COVID-19. This resulted in the suspension of all sports competitions in the United States.

With other players on the team scoring better, the Jazz relied more on Joubert to keep the team’s defense at a very high level, although his scoring ability is also good from any position.

The formula ended in success when it concluded the regular season as the 4th best offensive and 3rd best defense in the league, to be the best team in the NBA overall.

The Jazz finished with 9 points per 100 ownership, nearly three points behind their closest rivals the Los Angeles Clippers (6.1), which they face in the Western Conference semifinal elimination with a 1-0 advantage for the Utah team.

Gobert finished first with 84 votes and 464 points, closely followed by Australian goalkeeper Ben Simmons (Philadelphia Sakers), who scored 287 points and finished second, while strongman striker Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors) finished third. Point, even though he didn’t have a vote for first place.

Pam Adebayo (Miami Heat) finished first, who finished fourth with 31 points, but became the regular season’s big individual disappointment, given that he was expected to have a better individual and team performance in the end.

Simmons, one of the league’s most versatile defenders thanks to his height and great sportsmanship, helped lead the second-best defense in the league, which in turn helped Philadelphia take the top spot in the playoffs. from the Eastern Conference.

On the other hand, Green has shown that he can still make a significant impact on defense after leading the Warriors to the fifth best defensive ranking in the NBA during the regular season.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has already announced the sixth player awards, which were won by Joubert’s teammate, Jordan Clarkson. The most developed player, awarded to striker Julius Randle (New York Knicks); Coach of the Year, who also resided in New York with the Knicks when he was received by Tom Tibodo, and Jokic’s best player.

The individual Rookie of the Year award, this year’s All-Rookie, All-Defensive, and All-NBA Teams, as well as the All-Rookie, All-Defensive and All-NBA teams are yet to be shared.

Sonia Salazar