By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
As the final stretch of the 2022-23 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season approaches, the race is not only heating up for the playoffs but also for the individual awards that are handed out at the end of the campaign. The list of leading candidates for the EuroLeague Best Defender Award includes guards and big men all of whom have left their mark through unrelenting defense this season.
Rodrigue Beaubois, Anadolu Efes Istanbul
A member of the esteemed 50-40-90 shooting club as recently as 2020-21, Beaubois is best known for his offensive contributions to the two-time defending champions. However, opposing guards and coaches are well aware of Beaubois’s defensive chops. Thanks to his quickness, long arms and competitive character, Beaubois often guards the opposition’s best guard and has produced impressive numbers. Not only is he ranked ninth in the league in blocks (0.9 bpg.), but he is the only guard in the top 40! Beaubois’s 1.2 steals are 15th in the league and he is one of only three players in the top 20 in both steals and blocks.
Kevarrius Hayes, Zalgiris Kaunas
Hayes has emerged as a key force in the paint for Zalgiris in just his second EuroLeague campaign. He has blocked the third-most shots in the league this season (1.2 bpg.) despite averaging less than 20 minutes per game. Hayes is also the only player in the 2022-23 EuroLeague averaging at least 1 steal (1.0 spg.) and 1 block. He is a big reason – both literally and figuratively – that Zalgiris has allowed the third-fewest points in the EuroLeague this season (77.3 ppg.) and is in the tick of the race to return to the playoffs.
Nikola Kalinic, FC Barcelona
Kalinic is the prototype of the modern wing defender as someone who can switch against any player and hold his own. His combination of length, speed and toughness allow Kalinic to stick with point guards or to hold his own against bigs, which is a constant thorn in the sides of opponents’ pick-and-roll plans. Similar to how classic rim protectors can impact the offense without registering any statistics, Kalinic’s presence is felt whenever he is on the floor and is among the main reasons Barcelona is in the top third in the league in points allowed.
Alessandro Pajola, Virtus Segafredo Bologna
The youngest player on this list, Pajola has made an instant impact in his maiden EuroLeague season just like he often makes an instant impact whenever he comes off the bench for Virtus. Pajola leads the league this season in steals on a per-minute basis with 3.5 prorated over 40 minutes. Whether using his boundless energy to frustrate ballhandlers or his instincts and game smarts to shoot the passing lanes, Pajola brings havoc to the backcourt and makes sure that Virtus capitalizes on that.
Walter Tavares, Real Madrid
A two-time EuroLeague Best Defender, Tavares is the competition’s career leader in blocked shots with 341 and he is blocking more shots this season than ever before. The 2.20-meter center has averaged 2.5 blocks per game this season, which is the highest ever for a player with at least 15 games played. No one-trick pony, Tavares also cleans up on the glass; he is second in the league in rebounds with 7.2 per game. With Tavares as his team’s defensive anchor, Los Blancos have held opponents to a league-low 50.1% shooting on two-pointers in no small part thanks to Sergeant Swat’s presence.