20 greatest defensive centers ever: The HoopsHype list
We have taken our 78 greatest defensive NBA players ever list and split it into five positions: point guards, shooting guards, small forwards, power forwards and centers. The players who received some votes but were ultimately left out are now included in the positional rankings, so you can see who nearly made the cut for our Top 78.
Bill Russell, who led the Celtics to 11 championships, is our No. 1 pick among centers. Check the full list down below:
1. Bill Russell
Top defensive accolades: One All-Defensive 1st Team selection, five times NBA rebounds leader
NBA rank: 2nd in total rebounds
11-time NBA champion and five-time NBA MVP Bill Russell was known for his rebounding, playmaking and, most of all, his defending. Even taking the era he played into account, we still came up with Russell as the best defender in NBA history, leading the way to a record amount of championships for the Boston Celtics.
We obviously don’t have any official data on Russell’s defensive numbers, nor were defensive accolades a thing until very late on in his career – even then, Russell has one 1st Team All-Defense on his resume, which came in 1968-69, the final year of his career when he was already 34 – so we mostly had to fall back on video evidence…
Celtics legend Sam Jones said Russell's mere presence would have opponents settling up for midrange jumpers rather than attack him near the rim (via Sporting News):
Another Hall of Fame teammate of Russell’s, Bob Cousy, also compared the center to a man playing amongst boys in that era due to his intensity, speed and quickness. Considering Russell was reportedly 6-foot-10 with a 7-foot-4 wingspan and a freak athlete (Russell once told Kendrick Perkins on Twitter that he was an Olympic-level high jumper in his heyday), that might not be too far off from the truth. Russell also had a fantastic basketball IQ, as he was notorious for blocking shots and keeping the ball in bounds to maintain possession, among other things.
One RealGM poster went back through old newspaper articles to give a rough estimate of the type of block numbers Russell might have put up in his prime and came up with 8.1 blocks on a sample size of 135 games. Obviously, the actual number was almost certainly lower than that, as games in which Russell got a mundane number of blocks probably didn’t get mentioned in the post-game newspaper reports as often. Plus, his career spanned 963 regular-season games, so 135 games is a decent but not great sample size for Russell’s time in the NBA.
Even so, Russell was one of one when it came to defensive impact to winning, so he earns the top spot in our ranking of greatest defenders in NBA history.
2. Hakeem Olajuwon
Top defensive accolades: Two Defensive Player of the Year awards, nine All-Defensive Team selections, three times NBA blocks leader, 10 years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 1st in blocks, 8th in defensive rebounds, 10th in steals
Few players in NBA history can say they made as much of an impact as Hall of Fame center Hakeem Olajuwon, an all-time player who thrived in the ‘80s and ‘90s.
Olajuwon earned 1st Team All-Defense honors five times and 2nd Team All-Defense honors another four times, the latter honor coming as late in his career as 1995-96 and 1996-97 when he was already in his mid-30s.
Olajuwon ranks first all-time in total blocks to this day, finishing his career with a ridiculous 3,830 rejections. He was more than just a shot-blocker, however, as he was also extremely nimble for a center, as evidenced by the Houston Rockets legend averaging 1.7 steals per game for his career. Olajuwon is actually the only player ever to rank Top 10 in blocks, steals and defensive rebounds.
His defense was hugely impactful to winning, too, as it led to three Finals trips and two championships for Houston.
3. Ben Wallace
Top defensive accolades: Four Defensive Player of the Year awards, six All-Defensive Team selections, one time NBA blocks leader, eight years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 14th in blocks, 29th in defensive rebounds, 68th in steals
One of the greatest success stories for an undrafted player in NBA history, 2004 NBA champion Ben Wallace won Defensive Player of the Year four times in his career, sweeping the award every year besides one from 2001-02 to 2005-06.
The one year he didn’t win it in that stretch, 2003-04, he finished second in the vote. Oh, and the Detroit Pistons won the title that year, so Wallace could take solace in that, too. Wallace is tied for most Defensive Player of the Year honors in league history with two other centers, both coming up later on this list.
He didn’t have the perfect size for a center, but he had unbelievable instincts on that end of the floor and played with a tenacity that few in the NBA could rival. He was also outrageously quick for his position, making him a great switch defender and creating one of the league’s all-time best defenses in Detroit during his peak.
Wallace ranks 14th all-time in blocked shots with 2,137, enjoying a three-year stretch in the early 2000s when he averaged 3.2 nightly rejections.
4. Dikembe Mutombo
Top defensive accolades: Four Defensive Player of the Year awards, six All-Defensive Team selections, three times NBA blocks leader, nine years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 2nd in blocks, 13th in defensive rebounds
Unlike some of the other players on this list so far, Hall of Fame center Dikembe Mutombo was more of a pure defensive specialist with less of an offensive game to speak of. Still, he was such a good defender and likable player overall, with the popular finger wag after blocked shots and all, that he made eight All-Star appearances in his career anyway despite averaging more than 13.8 points per game just once during his time in the NBA.
Mutombo’s defense was also quite impactful, as the big man led the league in blocks three times in his career, including in 1995-96 when he averaged an astonishing 4.5 blocks per game. That was the sixth-highest single-season block average in league history. Mutombo was such a good shot-blocker, with excellent length and timing on block attempts, that even as a 37-year-old in 2003-04, he was averaging 1.9 blocks per game.
Mutombo ranks second all-time in total blocks at 3,289.
5. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Top defensive accolades: 11 All-Defensive Team selections, four times NBA blocks leader
NBA rank: 3rd in blocks, 10th in defensive rebounds, 109th in steals
Possessing outrageous longevity, six-time NBA MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was an 11-time All-Defensive Team member, the third-highest mark in NBA history. That was five times as a 1st Teamer and six times as a 2nd Teamer. He never won Defensive Player of the Year but that was in large part due to the fact the award didn’t exist until ‘83 and by then, Abdul-Jabbar was squarely in his mid-30s.
Blocks also weren’t an official statistic until 1973-74, Abdul-Jabbar’s fifth season in the NBA, but even then, he still led the league in nightly rejections four times in his career. Despite the first four seasons of his career not being counted, Abdul-Jabbar also ranks third all-time in career blocks at 3,189.
From ‘74 through ‘77, the first four years of Abdul-Jabbar’s career in which blocks were tracked, the illustrious big man rejected 1,094 shots. If we simply add that amount to his overall total to make up for the four years of his career in which his blocks weren’t counted, we get to 4,283 swat-aways, a mark that would have shattered Olajuwon’s all-time record total of 3,830 career blocks. So really, at least for the non-Russell, non-Wilt Chamberlain years, Abdul-Jabbar is probably the NBA's all-time blocks king.
Considering the NBA was so much more paint-driven back in the '70s and '80s, Abdul-Jabbar’s paint protection was vital. Even in the ‘80s, past his athletic prime during the Showtime Laker days, Abdul-Jabbar averaged 2.0 blocks per game, a large factor in L.A.’s dynasty of that decade.
6. Dwight Howard
Top defensive accolades: Three Defensive Player of the Year awards, five All-Defensive 1st Team selections, two times NBA blocks leader, nine years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 4th in defensive rebounds, 13th in blocks, 146th in steals
A monstrous player in his prime, future Hall of Famer Dwight Howard was a defensive eraser in the paint, one who made a living blocking shots. Howard won Defensive Player of the Year three seasons in a row from ‘09 to ‘11, a stretch that saw him average 2.7 blocks (and 1.1 steals) per game and lead the Orlando Magic to the NBA Finals once.
That 2009 Magic team that made it all the way to the Finals boasted the best defense in the league that season, allowing just 101.3 points per 100 possessions, and a lot of that can be attributed to Howard’s elite level of rim protection, which would deter opponents from attacking the paint when he was in the game.
Howard’s freakish athleticism at the 5-spot and his timing on blocked shots was something to behold in his heyday.
7. Wilt Chamberlain
Top defensive accolades: Two All-Defensive Team selections
NBA rank: 1st in total rebounds
Defensive accolades didn’t exist until very late in Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain’s time in the NBA. (Even then, he was a two-time 2nd Team All-Defensive player.) Nor were blocks and steals ever recorded back then. But even so, he was an all-time defender when he locked in thanks to his ridiculous athleticism and size.
The same RealGM blog post about Russell also took a look at Chamberlain’s numbers when his total blocks for a game would get mentioned in the post-game newspaper reports. The poster found 112 games’ worth of evidence in which Chamberlain was averaging 8.8 blocks per contest, an outrageous mark. Surely we have to take those numbers with a grain of salt, but the actual number might not have been all that much lower.
Chamberlain had a reported 9-foot-6 standing reach, a 7-foot-8 wingspan and ridiculous vertical jumping ability. And because so much of basketball back then took place near the rim, that helped big men like Chamberlain camp down low and just wait to block shots left and right. Few had Chamberlain's freakish physical attributes and timing, though, which allowed him to do things like get his hand near the top of the backboard on attempted blocks:
Just for fun, here are some stats that came from Chamberlain newspaper clippings of yesteryear:
8. David Robinson
Top defensive accolades: One Defensive Player of the Year award, eight All-Defensive Team selections, one time NBA blocks leader, nine years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 6th in blocks, 24th in defensive rebounds, 66th in steals
An eight-time All-Defender and the 1991-92 Defensive Player of the Year, David Robinson ranks sixth all-time in blocks at 2,954.
One of the best athletes the NBA has ever seen, particularly for a 7-footer, Robinson boasted elite side-to-side movement prowess for a big man, as well as high-level leaping ability. That, along with his great size at 7-foot-1, made him a terror on the defensive end.
Along with Duncan and another player coming up later on the list, Robinson helped form various elite Spurs defenses during his time in the NBA.
9. Rudy Gobert
Top defensive accolades: Four Defensive Player of the Year awards, seven All-Defensive Team selections, one time NBA blocks leader, nine years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 31st in blocks, 37th in defensive rebounds
Perhaps no player has been hurt more by playing in the modern era than Minnesota Timberwolves big man Rudy Gobert. That’s because had he played in the ‘70s, ‘80s or ‘90s, he would have been asked to defend way more pure post-up centers, a task in which Gobert would have thrived thanks to his size, length and strength.
He also would have avoided playing in today’s floor-spacing, three-point-centric era, where big men so often have to be versatile enough to defend well on switches, which is not Gobert’s strongest suit. (Plus, with social media today, Gobert gets clowned way more often than he should for his occasional defensive miscues on switches. Elite big-men defenders of yester-year who would have fared equally poorly trying to defend ball-handlers didn’t have social media around to hurt their legacies.)
So if anything, for Gobert to be one of just three players along with Wallace and Mutombo to win four Defensive Player of the Year awards is even more impressive considering he is thriving in an era not tailored to his strengths.
Gobert is one of the best rim-protectors of his era – when he’s out there, foes either shoot it poorly from near the basket or avoid driving the ball at him at all – and just because he isn’t the best switch defender, that shouldn’t be held too harshly against him, as he’s undoubtedly an all-time defender.
10. Mark Eaton
Top defensive accolades: Two Defensive Player of the Year awards, five All-Defensive Team selections, four times NBA blocks leader, six years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 4th in blocks, 87th in defensive rebounds
One of the greatest shot-blockers ever, former Utah Jazz center Mark Eaton was a behemoth on the floor, standing at 7-foot-4 and weighing nearly 300 pounds. But he was nimble enough to be a huge factor defensively, blocking 3.5 shots per game for his career, the highest career block average for any player ever.
Eaton ranks fourth all-time in career blocks at 3,064 and his 5.56 blocks per game in 1985-86 remains the highest single-season block average for a player in league history.
Eaton finished his career with two Defensive Player of the Year awards and three 1st Team All-Defenses. All in all, the Jazz legend was one of the most impactful defenders the NBA has ever seen.
11. Alonzo Mourning
Top defensive accolades: Two Defensive Player of the Year awards, two All-Defensive 1st Team selections, two times NBA blocks leader, five years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 11th in blocks, 99th in defensive rebounds
A two-time Defensive Player of the Year winner, Hall of Fame big man Alonzo Mourning was a monster defensively for the Charlotte Hornets and the Miami Heat in the ‘90s, leading the league in blocks in ‘99 and ‘00 when he averaged 3.8 rejections overall.
Mourning is a bit underrated defensively historically due to the fact he played in an era with so many elite defensive centers. As such, the big man only made two All-Defensive Teams in his career (both times as 1st Teamer) even though he averaged nearly 3.0 blocks per game during his time in the NBA.
The Georgetown legend ranks 11th all-time in career blocks to this day.
12. Nate Thurmond
Top defensive accolades: Five All-Defensive Team selections
NBA rank: 250th in blocks
A two-time 1st Team All-Defender, Warriors legend Nate Thurmond thrived in the ‘60s and ‘70s when he made seven All-Star appearances and five All-Defensive Teams overall. Thurmond was a shot-blocking extraordinaire, one who protected the paint at a very high level in his prime.
The NBA didn’t officially start tracking blocked shots until the final four seasons of Thurmond’s career, starting in 1973-74. Despite Thurmond already being in his 30s by then, the big man still averaged 2.9, 2.4, 1.3 and 1.7 blocks over his final four campaigns, making us wonder what that number might have been like at his athletic peak.
13. Marcus Camby
Top defensive accolades: One Defensive Player of the Year award, four All-Defensive Team selections, four times NBA blocks leader, six years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 12th in blocks, 36th in defensive rebounds, 199th in steals
One of the best shot-blockers in league history, 17-year NBA veteran Marcus Camby was a game-changer on the defensive end during his prime. Camby enjoyed a four-year stretch in which he blocked 3.3 shots per game, leading the league in rejections three times during that span of time.
Camby won Defensive Player of the Year once during that time, in 2006-07, and finished second in the voting the following season, ‘08. Using his excellent length and timing to block shots, Camby ranks 12th all-time in career blocks to this day.
14. Shaquille O'Neal
Top defensive accolades: Three All-Defensive 2nd Team selections, five years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 8th in blocks, 11th in defensive rebounds, 352nd in steals
Defense probably isn’t the first thing you think about when you remember Shaquille O’Neal’s illustrious NBA career but the Big Aristotle was a deterrent on that end of the floor, especially during his time with the Lakers. O'Neal's sheer size was a hugely intimidating factor, leading many opponents to avoid driving into the paint when the big man was in the game. That alone made him a defensive asset even if he didn't always put his best effort on that end of the floor.
O’Neal’s 1999-00 season was one of the greatest individual campaigns ever by a player, a league year that saw the 7-foot behemoth be named regular-season MVP, earn 1st Team All-NBA honors, be named an All-Star, win his first career championship and win Finals MVP. What many may not remember is that O’Neal averaged 2.4 blocks that season and finished second in the Defensive Player of the Year vote, meaning that the all-time big man came that close to sweeping just about every major accolade possible in that campaign.
Regardless, for his career, it’s true that outside of blocking shots, O’Neal conserved energy at times on the defensive end. As such, even despite his outrageous physical talent, he made just three 2nd Team All-Defenses. O’Neal is eighth all-time in career blocks at 2,732.
15. Patrick Ewing
Top defensive accolades: Three All-Defensive Team selections, five years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 7th in blocks, 12th in defensive rebounds, 123rd in steals
On this list in large part thanks to his shot-blocking longevity, Knicks legend Patrick Ewing was a great rim protector in his prime, one who enjoyed a five-year stretch early in his career where he averaged 3.3 blocks (and 1.1 steals) per game.
Even by '99, the year New York made the surprising NBA Finals trip in the lockout-shortened season when Ewing was already 36, the Georgetown legend was blocking 2.6 shots per game. Blessed with great size, length and timing, Ewing was a borderline eraser down low for a lot of his Knicks career.
16. Tyson Chandler
Top defensive accolades: One Defensive Player of the Year award, three All-Defensive Team selections, six years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 33rd in defensive rebounds, 50th in blocks, 449th in steals
The Defensive Player of the Year in 2011-12, big man Tyson Chandler also made three All-Defensive Teams in his career, once as a 1st Teamer. Chandler wasn’t the most fleet of foot defender nor was he some monster shot-blocker but he was an expert in using verticality, often forming a wall near the rim to make it difficult for opponents to score on paint forays.
Chandler used his defensive skills to make three Team USA rosters, including once for the Olympics in 2012 and another time for the FIBA World Championship in 2010. That’s the level of defensive intensity and impact Chandler offered in his prime, that he was even deemed Team USA-worthy despite not having much of an offensive game to speak of outside of dunking.
17. Wes Unseld
NBA rank: 95th in defensive rebounds, 408th in blocks, 451st in steals
Hall of Fame big man Wes Unseld wasn't much of a shot-blocker but he was extremely strong, which helped him slow down opposing bigs attempting to post him up. And that was an era in which post-ups were much more common than they are today, so that skill set was hugely valuable in his heyday. Unseld was also a fantastic rebounder on the defensive end, an underrated skill when it comes to defending.
18. Marc Gasol
Top defensive accolades: One Defensive Player of the Year award, one All-Defensive Team selection, four years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 60th in blocks, 78th in defensive rebounds, 310th in steals
The younger NBA Gasol brother, Marc won Defensive Player of the Year in 2012-13 when he was also named a 2nd Team All-Defender. That season for the Grizzlies, the Spanish big man led a defense that gave up just 99.1 points per 100 possessions, the second-best mark in the NBA that year.
Gasol also played a large part in the Raptors' run to the 2018-19 championship, particularly in Toronto's second-round matchup against Philadelphia and superstar big man Joel Embiid. In that series, Gasol played fantastic defense on his All-NBA foe, holding Embiid to 17.6 points nightly on 37 percent shooting from the floor over seven games.
Gasol wasn't the quickest or most athletic big man but he made up for that by using his great basketball instincts and IQ to almost always be in the right position to deter rim attacks by foes. He also had quick hands that would help him pick up opportune blocks and steals from time to time.
19. Moses Malone
Top defensive accolades: Two All-Defensive Team selections, one year receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 9th in defensive rebounds, 29th in blocks, 138th in steals
Hall of Fame big man Moses Malone made just two All-Defensive Teams in his career, once a 1st Teamer in '83) but he ranks Top 30 all-time in blocks and Top 10 in defensive rebounds.
Malone was hugely intimidating during his time in the NBA due to his size and strength, with opponents often choosing to settle for jumpers rather than challenge him near the rim.
That helped lead to a whole lot of team success for Malone, who played 100 playoff games in his career and won a championship in 1982-83.
20. Joakim Noah
Top defensive accolades: One Defensive Player of the Year award, three All-Defensive Team selections, five years receiving Defensive Player of the Year votes
NBA rank: 134th in blocks, 175th in defensive rebounds
If his peak hadn't been so short, Joakim Noah would have certainly finished within the Top 50 of this ranking – and probably a good bit higher.
Prior to the injury troubles that shortened his prime, Noah was an extremely unique and impactful defender. He was a big man who played with KG-like intensity, had extremely quick feet laterally, great instincts on the defensive end, and could not only protect the paint at a high level but also defend well enough on switches.
In the cult classic first-round series between Boston and Chicago in the '09 playoffs, the Bulls were down three games to two and facing elimination in triple overtime at home. With the game tied and under a minute left, Noah used all of his aforementioned attributes to jump a passing lane, steal a ball, bring it down the other way himself and dunk it on Paul Pierce. The huge play helped the Bulls eventually secure the win and force Game 7 against the defending champions.
Pre-injury Joakim was a special defender and player overall, it's just a shame his body couldn't hold up.
Noah was a two-time 1st Team All-Defender and won Defensive Player of the Year in 2013-14.
This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: 20 greatest defensive centers ever: The HoopsHype list
