French basketball player Rudy Gobert was voted best defenseman of the NBA season on Thursday for the third time in his career.

A distinction that rewards the excellent season of the Utah Jazz player, first in the Western Conference and currently engaged in the second round of the play-offs.

The French pivot of Utah Rudy Gobert won Thursday the trophy for best defender of the NBA season, for the third time in his career after 2018 and 2019. Gobert, 28, was chosen in first position by 84 of the 100 voters who had to nominate the five best defenders of their choice, from an established list. With 464 points, he is ahead of the leader of the Philadelphia Sixers, Ben Simmons (287 pts), and the strong winger of the Golden State Warriors, Draymond Green (76 pts).

In 71 regular season games, "Gobzilla" has compiled 13.5 rebounds (2nd behind Atlanta inside, Clint Capela) and 2.7 blocks on average (2nd behind Indiana hub Myles Turner).

Above all, he will have been the 4th most dissuasive player in the league according to the established defensive assessment, only ahead of three others who have played far fewer matches than him and who were logically not part of the list of finalists.

Among the best defenders of all time

With three trophies on the chimney, Gobert does as well as pivot Dwight Howard, acclaimed in 2009, 2010 and 2011, when he played in Orlando.

Two players share the top of this ranking, with four distinctions: Dikembe Mutombo (1995 with Denver, 1997, 1998 with Atlanta, 2001 with Philadelphia) and Ben Wallace (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006 with Detroit).

Another Frenchman won this trophy, Joakim Noah, in 2014 while wearing the Chicago Bulls jersey.

An excellent season with the Jazz

Gobert, who signed at the end of December 2020 a record contract extension for a Frenchman in the NBA ($ 205 million over five years), before being selected for the second year in a row at the All-Star Game in February, has largely contributed to the excellent regular season of Jazz.

Utah, who finished 1st in the Western Conference with the best record in the league, got rid of the Memphis Grizzlies in the 1st round of the play-offs. On Tuesday, the Salt Lake City team defeated the Los Angeles Clippers (112-109) in the first game of the semi-final. A victory guaranteed just before the buzzer, thanks to a decisive counter successful by Gobert.