Amen Thompson voted as top Defensive Player of the Year candidate

There's no denying that the Houston Rockets have found a true defensive stopper in Amen Thompson. Taken with the No. 4 selection in the 2023 NBA Draft, Thompson has been one of the league's premier perimeter defenders since joining the association. Over the last two seasons, Thompson has finished fi

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There's no denying that the Houston Rockets have found a true defensive stopper in Amen Thompson. Taken with the No. 4 selection in the 2023 NBA Draft, Thompson has been one of the league's premier perimeter defenders since joining the association. Over the last two seasons, Thompson has finished fifth and eighth in Defensive Player of the Year Award voting, making one All-Defensive First Team.

In 210 games, Thompson has averages of 1.4 steals per contest and 0.8 blocks. For these reasons, in addition to his tremendous speed and athleticism, Thompson is considered a legitimate candidate for the Defensive Player of the Year Award for the upcoming 2026-27 season. In a recent poll conducted by ESPN's NBA insiders, Thompson was voted as the fourth-most

likely player to win the award, tied with Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat. Last year's winner Victor Wembanyama received the most votes, with Giannis Antetokounmpo second and Chet Holmgren rounding out the top three.

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This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Amen Thompson voted as top Defensive Player of the Year candidate