By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Olimpia Milano big man Kyle Hines has been chosen as the 2021-22 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Best Defender, the competition announced Tuesday. For Hines, this is the third Best Defender award in his career (2016, 2018, 2022), voted by EuroLeague’s head coaches.
Two-time EuroLeague Best Defender Walter Tavares finished second in the head coaches’ voting, followed by Nick Calathes, Pierria Henry and Bryant Dunston who were third, fourth and fifth, respectively.
Per EuroLeague:
The AX Armani Exchange Milan center was voted such by Turkish Airlines EuroLeague head coaches. Hines anchored the best defensive team in the competition, as Milan allowed a league-low 71.9 points per game. He was seemingly everywhere, switching on pick-and-rolls, changing shots, reading passing lanes and using his physicality to intimidate opponents in the paint. At age 35, Hines is also the oldest player to receive the award. His overall defensive activity impressed EuroLeague head coaches, who agreed about how difficult it is to score against Milan when Hines is on the floor. Hines previously won the EuroLeague Best Defender award with CSKA Moscow in 2016 and 2018.
The Best Defender Trophy is one of several end-of-season awards to honor the best players in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague. The first of this season’s honorees was announced Monday when Vasilije Micic of Anadolu Efes Istanbul was confirmed as the winner of this season’s Alphonso Ford Top Scorer Trophy. The identity of the EuroLeague Rising Star will be revealed on Wednesday, followed by the All-EuroLeague teams on Thursday and Friday. The winners of the EuroLeague MVP award and – for the first time – the Alexander Gomelskiy Coach of the Year Trophy will be revealed at the 2022 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four Awards Ceremony in Belgrade, Serbia. The Gianluigi Porelli EuroLeague Executive of the Year will be announced in the summer.