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“Why should I be penalized for being consistent year after year?”: Rudy Gobert argues the case for his 4th NBA Defensive Player of the Year award

Amulya Shekhar
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"Why should I be penalized for being consistent year after year?": Rudy Gobert argues the case for his 4th NBA Defensive Player of the Year award

Rudy Gobert points out why voter fatigue is such a nuisance of an excuse to not vote for a player in any NBA award race.

There can be no doubt about the 7’2″ Frenchman and his amazing defensive play. This man is perhaps the single most effective layup deterrent to ply his trade in the NBA.

When Rudy Gobert is parked in the paint, even the best finishers in basketball tend to avoid the area. His behemoth wingspan allows him to get a standing reach of 9’7″, by far the biggest in the NBA.

Gobert also has become better and better as a help defender and on switches at the perimeter over the years. His defensive acumen is now at perhaps the highest point of his career thus far.

Also Read – “I want to be the best player ever”: Joel Embiid believes the Cameroonian All-Star can get his own game up to Michael Jordan and co’s historic standards

However, despite his barnstorming defensive performances and resolve this year, Gobert is not at the top of the DPOY leaderboard for the ongoing 2021-22 NBA season.

Rudy Gobert pours his heart out about the DPOY race in an interview with Malika Andrews

Rudy Gobert was recently a guest with ESPN’s Malika Andrews on NBA Today. The ESPN host put the Frenchman into a zone of comfort before allowing him to vent about his true feelings:

“If anybody else not named Rudy Gobert was doing what I do this year and having the impact that I have this year, they would be the frontrunner and it would be clear. … Why should I be penalized for being consistent year after year?”

Also Read – “Clyde Drexler, you’ve got two left shoes and I just kicked your a**”: When Michael Jordan was extra feisty against The Glide during practice for the 1992 Olympics

Despite his pleas and logic, however, turning the voters to one’s own side has usually been a futile exercise. Gobert is probably going to miss out on his 4th DPOY honors this year.

About the author

Amulya Shekhar

Amulya Shekhar

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Amulya Shekhar is a sports junkie who thrives on the thrills and frills of live sports action across basketball, football (the American variant works too), parkour, adventure sports. He believes sports connect us to our best selves, and he hopes to help people experience sports more holistically.

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