Lu Dort makes Kevin Pelton’s All-NBA Defensive team ballot
With All-NBA ballots due in the coming weeks, more and more votes will be revealed from media members who undertake this task.
On Wednesday, ESPN’s Kevin Pelton released his All-NBA Defensive teams. Oklahoma City Thunder wing Lu Dort made the second team as a guard.
Pelton wrote:
Even as Dort has gotten more opportunities to run the Oklahoma City offense in the second half of the season, he hasn’t forgotten his roots as a physical on-ball defender. The numbers suggest Dort’s occasional gambles on defense aren’t costing more than the plays he makes.
That link in his segment refers to Zach Lowe’s May 7 “10 Things” column in which he wrote about Dort gambling by ducking under screens, even against great shooters.
Whether or not that is harming the Thunder’s defense, there’s no denying that Dort has continued to be an absolutely force on that end of the court even while becoming a playmaker and de facto point guard on offense.
He is physical yet knows how to avoid fouling, is smart as a defender and consistently goes up against the best player on the other team.
Pelton’s first team consisted of guards Ben Simmons and Jimmy Butler, forwards Kawhi Leonard and Draymond Green and center Rudy Gobert.
His second team had Jrue Holiday and Dort at the guard spots, Matisse Thybulle and Giannis Antetokounmpo at forward and center Clint Capela.
