Utah Jazz: Ranking Rudy Gobert among Defensive Player of the Year candidates

3. Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert vs Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons

There are a multitude of questions surrounding mercurial point forward Ben Simmons heading into the 2021-22 NBA season. Whether he’s likely to win the Defensive Player of the Year award is not among the most pressing.

Still, mindful Utah Jazz fans will already have Simmons on their radar. After all, he was the runner up behind Rudy Gobert for the 2020-21 award, and with good reason. He posted a 106 Defensive Rating, and in the case of Simmons, that metric may have slightly undersold his actual value.

Like Adebayo, Simmons is a versatile defender, capable of guarding positions one-through-five on any given night. Unlike Adebayo, however, Simmons actually is elite in one facet of defense. There are precious few superior perimeter defenders in the NBA than Ben Simmons. He’s able to leverage his unique combination of size, length and lateral mobility to guard virtually anybody and force them into a tough night.

Such versatility, combined with the potential impact of voter fatigue, should make Simmons a prime candidate to usurp Rudy Gobert. However, there is an elephant that exists perpetually in Simmons’ room: his standing with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Rudy Gobert and the Utah Jazz have no such issues. It’s difficult to anticipate how long Simmons’ saga with the Sixers will take to resolve, but every game that he’s unable to showcase his elite defense counts against his Defensive Player of the Year case. If Simmons misses half of the season or more, he’s unlikely to even be considered for one of the league’s most prestigious individual awards.

Rudy Gobert was with the Utah Jazz on opening night, protecting the rim with greater aptitude than any other center in the league is capable of demonstrating. Until Simmons finds a new NBA home, it’s hard to rank him any higher on this list.