The NBA has plenty of good things, but it also gives fans a lot of stuff to be confused some times. One of the biggest controversies in recent years is how players that won a certain award didn’t make the All-NBA team for that category. That’s something that nobody is able to understand, only the league.
Throughout history, four players have won the Defensive Player of the Year award and haven’t made the All-Defensive First Team. As stated before, it’s rare to see, but it’s happened. We’re still waiting for an explanation, but it doesn’t look like we’ll get it shortly.
Alvin Robertson (1986)
Alvin Robertson won the award in 1986 as part of the San Antonio Spurs, but, as you may know, he didn’t make the All-Defensive First Team that season. However, he did make the second team. Paul Pressey, Kevin McHale, Mark Eaton, Sidney Moncrief and Maurice Cheeks were all part of that team, but not Robertson.
Dikembe Mutombo (1995)
One of the greatest blockers of all time, Dikembe Mutombo was a common name in these lineups, but not in 1995, the year he won the longed-for award. Mutombo won the award four times during his career, but the first time, he couldn’t make the All-Defensive First Team. Instead, Mookie Blaylock, Gary Payton, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and David Robinson made the team.
Tyson Chandler (2012)
A more recent case saw Tyson Chandler, at the time with the Knicks, getting snubbed from the All-Defensive First Team the same year he won the DPOY award. Chandler only won the award once during his career, in 2012 and that didn’t help him get in the All-Defensive First Team. Instead, Chris Paul, Tony Allen, LeBron James, Serge Ibaka and Dwight Howard made the team that year.
Marc Gasol (2013)
Tyson Chandler suffered and also did this to others. One year after being crowned DPOY, the center did make the All-Defensive First Team at the expense of Marc Gasol, who won the award that year. Gasol taking home that prize created a lot of controversy around the league, but people forgot about it eventually. That year, Tony Allen, LeBron James, Serge Ibaka, Joakim Noah and Chandler made the team, leaving Gasol out.
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