LeBron James will just have to settle for another award.
In a season with several good candidates â€" and no real consensus â€" James finished fourth in Defensive Player of the Year voting, behind Tyson Chandler, Serge Ibaka and Dwight Howard.
I did not have a vote in this category, but it’s hard to argue with the choices of Chandler or Ibaka; the Oklahoma City power forward had such an impact on games with his shot-blocking, that he probably would have been my selection. With that said, I disagree with honoring Howard in any way this season. He was a destructive force to his team, and his defensive numbers weren’t all that extraordinary.
James, on the other hand, consistently guarded four positions, and sometimes five. No player in the league allowed his coach more leeway, in terms of setting a defensive lineup.
He received seven first-place votes, compared to 45 for Chandler, 41 for Ibaka and 18 for Howard.
James finished comfortably ahead of some quality competition: Kevin Garnett, Tony Allen, Andre Iguodala, Shawn Marion, Luol Deng and Josh Smith.
The MVP award should be announced within the week.
Tags: Defensive Player of the Year, Dwight Howard, LeBron James, Luol Deng, Miami Heat, Serge Ibaka, Tony Allen, Tyson Chandler
Tim Burke, Executive Editor, The Palm Beach Post.
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