The offseason is prime time for player rankings. Media giants and small outlets alike crank out top 100 lists (like I did earlier this month) or similar arrangements during the dead period of the news cycle. Many of these lists place emphasis on highlighting the biggest stars in basketball, with offense, box score stats, and accolades being held at the utmost importance. Rarely, though, do people turn their attention solely to the defensive end of the court. Today, I’ve put together a pool of who I’d consider the 75 best defenders in the NBA right now (2025 draftees not included) and separated them into five separate ordered tiers. I made my selections using a combination of the eye test, advanced stats, and trophy cabinets. Defense isn’t black-and-white enough to take a player-by-player approach to this ranking, which is why I went with tiers instead.
Let’s dig in and show some deserved love to the game’s top stoppers.
Tier 1: Best in the World, Perennial DPOY (1-5)
- Bam Adebayo
An uncharacteristic down year put a stop to what could have been a ten-year All-Defense streak for Bam Adebayo. He’s played eight years in the league and had earned that recognition in all of his last five prior to 2024-25. Despite that, the whole world knows how extraordinary Adebayo is on that end. He’s a brick wall when protecting the rim as both a four and a five man, and he moves his feet as well as any big man in basketball.
- Anthony Davis
It’s pretty insane to think that AD has never won a Defensive Player of the Year. When he’s able to stay healthy for a whole season (which isn’t always), he’s a lock for All-Defense, and he has four top-five DPOY finishes in his career. The Brow blocks shots and walls up the interior with a ferocity few players ever have been able to match.
- Rudy Gobert
With each passing year, Gobert further cements himself as one of the greatest defenders the game has ever seen. 2024-25 could be considered a bit of a down season for him, but he still made his eighth All-Defensive team while helping the Wolves finish sixth in defensive rating. In the playoffs, he did an admirable job guarding Luka on switches and was a key catalyst in Minnesota’s five-game victory over the Lakers. Given how Gobert has always been behind the curve in terms of explosiveness and foot speed, never overly-reliant on physical advantages, it’s tough to imagine him dropping off much more in the twilight years of his career.
- Evan Mobley
Coming off his first Defensive Player of the Year win, Mobley has as much of a claim as anybody to the title of best in the world defensively. The 24-year-old is a monster in the paint and on the perimeter. He gives the Cavs nearly infinite optionality schematically because he can mold into any sort of role at the four or the five. Mobley is on an all-time trajectory on D and the sky is the limit for him.
- Victor Wembanyama
Speaking of all-time trajectories, Wemby may already have a case to be a top-ten defender ever if you throw out accolades and longevity and just look purely at the on-court sample. He’s an absurd shot blocker who eats up worlds of space, forcing tough looks inside and outside against anyone who dares challenge him. He led the NBA in total rejections as a sophomore despite only playing 46 games. The Alien was a virtual lock for DPOY in 2024-25 before he went down with a blood clot, and the trophy is probably his to lose both next year and for the foreseeable future.
Tier 2: The Anchors (6-12)
The value of an anchor will always transcend that of an on-ball stopper or defensive playmaking dynamo. An anchor is a player who can carry the weight of an entire five-man unit on their shoulders, directing his teammates and being involved in nearly every possession in some way. Traditionally, anchors are centers (like Jarrett Allen), but some smaller players are able to play the role too. Draymond Green’s ranking here needs no explanation, but his status as an all-time anchor despite being just 6’6” always deserves recognition. OG Anunoby is the premier example of a 1-5 wing stopper who can truly be thrown at the opposing team’s best player no matter what. Alex Caruso is such a game-breaking point-of-attack warden that he can elevate lineups without rim protecting centers (i.e. the Vucevic-led Chicago Bulls). While these guys aren’t quite the very best in business, any team they’re on can feel pretty good about their chances of having a good defense, regardless of supporting cast.
- Jarrett Allen
- OG Anunoby
- Alex Caruso
- Draymond Green
- Chet Holmgren
- Jaren Jackson Jr.
- Amen Thompson
Potential riser to watch for in 2025-26: Chet Holmgren
Holmgren’s only weakness right now is his skinny frame. It can be a little too easy for stocky opponents to move him out of the way and score inside. Beyond that, he has all the tools to win multiple DPOYs in his career. The Minnesota native has freakishly quick feet for a seven-footer, and his timing and feel for blocking shots without fouling is uncanny. He was just the anchor of a championship team and he’s only 23 years old. There is no limit on how good he can become on either end of the floor, but especially defense.
Tier 3: All-Defense Mainstays (13-28)
The players in this tier routinely make appearances on All-Defensive ballots. Thirteen of them have made at least one All-Defensive team. As for the others, Nic Claxton absolutely should have in 2022-23— he was a legitimate DPOY candidate, finishing ninth in voting for the award— and Ausar Thompson and Walker Kessler will both probably make at least one in their careers. Most of these guys do more than just one thing at an elite level on defense. Jones and Camara can guard every position and even masquerade as rim protectors. Kessler and Zubac turn the paint into a no-fly zone while also hogging defensive rebounds. Jrue Holiday is maybe the most versatile guard defender we’ve ever seen. Overall, if you’re not at least considering the members of this club for your end-of-season defensive awards, you’re probably doing it wrong.
- Giannis Antetokounmpo
- Dillon Brooks
- Toumani Camara
- Nic Claxton
- Dyson Daniels
- Luguentz Dort
- Jrue Holiday
- Herb Jones
- Walker Kessler
- Brook Lopez
- Jaden McDaniels
- Jalen Suggs
- Ausar Thompson
- Derrick White
- Jalen Williams
- Ivica Zubac
Potential riser to watch for in 2025-26: Herb Jones
Last time Herb Jones was healthy, which was 2023-24, he made All-Defensive First Team and finished fifth in DPOY while commanding a top-ten Pelicans defense. Because he only played 20 games last season, a few other guys were able to get a leg up on him. However, if he’s on the court often once again in 2026, Jones will be right back in the “best wing defender in ball” conversations.
Tier 4: Just Below Elite (29-43)
It’s hard to consistently clamp up at an All-Defense level year in and year out. The guys in this tier all have one or two flaws holding them back from reaching that level. For Embiid, Isaac, and Porzingis, it’s injuries. For Dunn, Smart, and Thybulle, it’s offensive limitations that keep them from staying on the court and making their defensive presence felt as much as possible. For Eason, Nembhard, and Wallace, it’s simply lack of experience in the league. On their best nights, though, all of these players look incredible on defense.
- Donovan Clingan
- Kris Dunn
- Tari Eason
- Keon Ellis
- Joel Embiid
- Dorian Finney-Smith
- Isaiah Hartenstein
- Jonathan Isaac
- Davion Mitchell
- Andrew Nembhard
- Kristaps Porzingis
- Mitchell Robinson
- Marcus Smart
- Matisse Thybulle
- Cason Wallace
Potential riser to watch for in 2025-26: Donovan Clingan
Portland has constructed an impressive defensive infrastructure, with strong stopples at all five positions. Clingan, who’s slated to start at the five, will be at the center of it all. The incoming sophomore has the potential to be a DPOY-caliber rim protector— he was already one of the top per-minute shot blockers in the league as a rookie. If he can find more stamina and clean up his fouling habits, he’s in the right situation to realize that outcome.
Tier 5: Steady Schematic Stoppers (44-75)
Only a select few players in the league can be trusted to regularly guard stars or anchor an entire defense by themselves. Most are tasked with fitting into a system, pulling their weight in a team’s scheme. The 32 guys in this final tier excel with that defensive role player responsibility. They do whatever their team needs, from making the right rotation, to switching up and down the lineup, to delivering the occasional highlight steal or block. Without the players in this group, the lives of anchors like Gobert and Wemby would be a lot more difficult.
- Nickeil Alexander-Walker
- Lonzo Ball
- Scottie Barnes
- Goga Bitadze
- Adem Bona
- Jaylen Brown
- Bilal Coulibaly
- Kevin Durant
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- Aaron Gordon
- Al Horford
- Andre Jackson Jr.
- Derrick Jones Jr.
- Luke Kornet
- Kawhi Leonard
- Cody Martin
- Aaron Nesmith
- Josh Okogie
- Onyeka Okongwu
- Isaac Okoro
- Gary Payton II
- Jakob Poeltl
- Pascal Siakam
- Ben Simmons
- Isaiah Stewart
- Jayson Tatum
- Myles Turner
- Jarred Vanderbilt
- Fred VanVleet
- Dean Wade
- Franz Wagner
- Peyton Watson
Potential riser to watch for in 2025-26: Bilal Coulibaly
Washington’s rebuild is far from over, but they have the foundation for a future identity on the defensive end. They boast activity, versatility, and length up and down their lineup, and Coulibaly is the personification of that. He stepped into the league in 2023-24 ready to guard stars and he’s a stock machine. As he finds more discipline and fills out his frame over time, we could see him rise to All-Defense contention.
The Bench Mob Blog 