The NBA officially announced today that Evan Mobley of the Cleveland Cavaliers has been named the Defensive Player of the Year for this season. The final candidates for this prestigious award were Mobley (Cavaliers), Jalen Johnson (Hawks), and Draymond Green (Warriors).

During the regular season, Mobley played in 71 games for the Cavaliers, averaging 18.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 0.9 steals, and 1.6 blocks per game. He shot 55.7% from the field, 37% from three - point range, and 72.5% from the free - throw line. Notably, he was the only player in the league this season to record at least 1,000 points, 600 rebounds, 60 steals, and 100 blocks. His statistics ranked highly across multiple categories: 5th in blocks, a plus - minus of +546 (1st in the Eastern Conference and 5th in the league), 10.4 average shot contests per game (5th in the league), 12th in field - goal percentage, 16th in rebounds. He had 34 games with multiple blocks (5th in the league) and was the sole player in the league to average over 1.5 blocks per game while keeping fouls under 2 per contest.

Under Mobley's influence, the Cavaliers' defensive efficiency ranked 8th in the league (111.8), and they limited opponents to a 45.4% field - goal percentage, the 3rd - best in the league.

Here are the detailed voting results:

• Mobley secured 35 first - place votes, 30 second - place votes, and 20 third - place votes, accumulating a total of 285 points to claim the title.
• Johnson received 25 first - place votes, 17 second - place votes, and 21 third - place votes, with a total of 197 points.
• Green earned 15 first - place votes, 20 second - place votes, and 19 third - place votes, totaling 154 points.
• Luguentz Dort got 11 first - place votes, 12 second - place votes, and 18 third - place votes, for a total of 109 points.
• Amen Thompson obtained 9 first - place votes, 12 second - place votes, and 12 third - place votes, scoring 93 points in total.
• Ivica Zubac collected 4 first - place votes, 4 second - place votes, and 2 third - place votes, with 34 points overall.
• Jaren Jackson Jr. received 1 second - place vote and 6 third - place votes, amounting to 9 points.
• Giannis Antetokounmpo got 1 first - place vote, contributing 5 points.
• Toumani Camara had 1 second - place vote and 1 third - place vote, for a total of 4 points.
• Bam Adebayo, Shai Gilgeous - Alexander, and Derrick White each received 1 second - place vote, earning 3 points.
• Rudy Gobert got 1 third - place vote, adding 1 point to the tally.