1st team
G: Chris Paul
G: Jimmy Butler
F: Kawhi Leonard
F: Draymond Green
C: Rudy Gobert
That left Rudy Gobert, DeAndre Jordan and Hassan Whiteside. Whiteside has been the most spectacular, and he has made huge progress over the last 40 games in staying down, tap-dancing between the ball-handler and the screener on the pick-and-roll -- effectively spooking the poor point guard from either shooting or passing. He is wrapping one of the greatest shot-blocking seasons ever.
But that addiction to swattage leaves Whiteside out of position when he comes up empty, clearing the lane for easy offensive boards and drop-off passes; the Heat rebound a higher percentage of opponent misses with Whiteside on the bench. His second jump, and second effort, are slower and less urgent than you'd expect.
And as I wrote Tuesday, dudes are beating him up a little bit in the post; opponents have hit 51 percent of post-up shots against him, per Synergy Sports, one of the worst marks in the league among big men who have faced a lot of such plays. Stepping out on the pick-and-roll remains an issue -- as it is for almost every 7-footer.
That includes Gobert. But he's a little faster gliding through tight spaces, and more careful deciding when to lunge for a block. Opponents have hit only 41 percent of shots around the rim with Gobert nearby, the stingiest mark in the league among rotation big men, and he's a hair tougher to score on in the post.
Basically, he's a better version of Whiteside. Coaches and scouts almost universally pick Gobert as the better defender
