Defensive Player of The Year 1955-1982

[magnax1]

I never really knew whether Pettit was a good defender or not. I'd be interested in learning more about him, though I really don't think there is a way to.

[Manute for Ever!]

I've never thought it was a conspiracy. Are there those who do?

Yeah, there are. In this day and age there is no such thing as coincidence anymore, only conspiracy. Personally, I believe the recording of blocks was more of a Cause and Effect situation.

[jlip]

He had 30-40 and 30-38 playoff games, as well. In fact, Regul8r posted a slew of his great playoff games. He also had a sensational 18 ppg, 29 rpg, .702 FG% (yes, .702) series in the '65 Finals. And in the '66 Finals, he LED Boston in scoring at 23.6 ppg.

Regul8r also posted several links which indicate that Russell's Celtics had multiple teams that were among the best ever in terms of defensive domination. I was very fascinated by one of those team's holding the Royals, who had had averaged 114 ppg, to 93 ppg in a playoff series. His data also indicated that those great Celtic teams were also among the greatest ever in points per 100 possessions.

As more-and-more of these defensive statistical analysis' are released perhaps the Jordan Generation will have a better appreciation of just how great Russell's impact was.

Do you have a link to Regul8r's thread? I don't think that I have "thread searching" privileges yet because of my limited number of posts.

[jlauber]

Do you have a link to Regul8r's thread? I don't think that I have "thread searching" privileges yet because of my limited number of posts.

I wish I did. It was in a Russell-GOAT thread awhile back. Perhaps he will chime in again.

[G.O.A.T]

Thanks to everyone for their responses, I really like looking back at things like this that can help unify eras. A lot of fans, especially the younger or more casual have a natural perception that the modern era is supreme. And while it may be, it's no more significant in it's time than any that's come before it. The present will always be king within itself. The past is easy to overlook as it is unchanging and never revolutionary in retrospect. The future however is an unknown and because of this, the assumption of the here and now as the pinnacle is proven unfounded.

Excellent thread G.O.A.T.


I think you have done a great job. There might be a few years I disagree with, like Russell in 57, not because of his ability, but injuries, but overall it's a very strong and accurate representation of what would have happen in the NBA if the DPOY award existed. Really would change the perception of some players like Russell and Chamberlain as well on All-Time rankings when people actually realize how great their work has been in the NBA.

In summary, great analysis and accurate conclusions. I hope you will be putting this and your All-Defensive team analysis in your book as well.

As always I appreciate your input. You and GP_20 have the best threads of this type on the site, and like you this is the type of stuff I enjoy reading and talking about.

Be curious to hear which years you have a different opinion on, this is a work in progress to be sure. I feel really bad that I couldn't find a year to give Nate Thurmond, Hondo or West the award, but I just can't see it based on the team and individual stats available coupled with anything and everything I could find to read about the era.

[nbacardDOTnet]

great thread !! repped !!

[G.O.A.T]

Yeah, there are. In this day and age there is no such thing as coincidence anymore, only conspiracy. Personally, I believe the recording of blocks was more of a Cause and Effect situation.

Care to elaborate, you've piqued my interest

[Pointguard]

Great piece.

[G.O.A.T]

I never really knew whether Pettit was a good defender or not. I'd be interested in learning more about him, though I really don't think there is a way to.

Pettit was a good defender in terms of effort and controlling the defensive back board. I've never seen it written or said he was a shot blocker or a lock down guy, but team mates like Cliff Hagan and Slater Martin are quoted as saying Bob was big on working hard on defense and demanding that of his teammates.

Pettit's stroy is a very interesting one, I recommend you use the SI vault and google videos to look into if you're interested. Despite his career being 50+ years old, there is a lot out there.

[fpliii]

Bumping an excellent thread.

[BlueandGold]

Your blatant homerism for the celtics is disguisting

other than that good list

[Whoah10115]

I wanna read over and respond, but I have to immediately take issue with KAJ.


I obviously haven't seen the majority of the regular season games, but I've seen plenty of old games and Kareem is hardly a great defensive player, much less elite. Outside of Milwaukee. He was a lazy ass on defense and Chamberlain was right in saying it was difficult to win without a center who plays on both sides of the ball. Kareem did not do that.

[1987_Lakers]

Underrated thread.

I don't think there is anyway Kareem wins DPOY in 1976 & 1979. I would probably go with Cowens in '76 & DJ or Jones in '79. Lakers were average defensively those years.

[WillC]

Excellent article, but...

1955
Candidates: Dolph Schayes, Paul Seymour, Bob Pettit, Larry Foust
Winner: Dolph Schayes
Explanation: The Nationals won with defense and while any of the five players from this team I selected as all-defensive would be a worthy candidate, but it was Schayes who was most crucial. He provided a dynamic defender who could guard the 3,4 or 5 and allow the Nats to juggle their front line with Red Kerr and forwards Earl Lloyd and Red Rocha. Plus he corralled the rebounds on the missed shots the Nats forced. An offensive force on the leagues best defensive team, I’d give him the nod in ’55.

Dolph Schayes is a horrendous choice for 1955 Defensive Player of the Year.

In his own words:

"I wasn't supposed to play defense. The teams back then were categorized in certain ways. There was a center, a passing guard, a shooting guard, a scoring forward, and a defensive forward. I happened to be the offensive forward, so I would always play against the defensive forward and he couldn't score. So I was able to kind of free-lance. I was very fortunate in that respect because it really helped my rebounding a great deal. I never boxed out. I don't teach it now because I never did it. So I would play the defensive forward, he would never get the ball, always passing off to the offensive forward, who would do the scoring. So I was always able to leave him and help rebound."

And there's more:

"In those rare instances where I had to play defense, I really didn't do a very good job. I'd hold my man to 30 points a game, which of course made [coach Al] Cervi very angry... Cervi wanted me to play more defense."

[pauk]

Good job GOAT, i just cant stop getting mindboggled about how many DPOYs/FMVPs Russell could had... may not be the most talented/skilled player ever but his accolades are hypothetically unmatched and will never be surpassed...