#369: 2026 Thinkies (Defensive Awards)
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In the 2026 Thinkies, the Thinking Basketball podcast celebrates the year's most impactful defensive performances with a mix of traditional awards and a surprise new category: Hustle Play of the Year. The episode features deep dives into six key defensive categories, with Ben and Cody reflecting on the evolving nature of NBA defense, where skills like motor, hands, point-of-attack defense, versatility, paint protection, and perimeter help increasingly overlap. Derek White of the Boston Celtics emerges as the biggest winner, taking home both Best Motor and Best Perimeter Helper, while also winning the new Hustle Play of the Year award for a full-court chase-down steal. Asar Thompson of the Detroit Pistons wins Best Point of Attack Defender, and Scottie Barnes is crowned Most Versatile Defender. Victor Weminyama dominates the Paint Protector category with a unanimous 100% vote share. The episode ends with a fun hypothetical: building the ultimate defensive lineup, featuring Wemby, White, Asar Thompson, Alex Caruso, and a debated fifth player—either Scottie Barnes or Draymond Green—highlighting the blend of athleticism, intelligence, and versatility that defines elite defense in 2026.
Derek White is the top defensive performer of 2026, winning Best Motor, Best Perimeter Helper, and Hustle Play of the Year.
Victor Weminyama is unanimously recognized as the best paint protector, showcasing elite rim protection and defensive versatility.
Asar Thompson edges out his brother Amen Thompson as the superior perimeter defender, with stronger defensive EPM and more consistent impact.
The line between categories is blurring—defensive excellence now requires a blend of motor, hands, anticipation, and communication.
Team defense is paramount: Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics dominate multiple categories, reflecting their elite defensive systems.
…and 3 more takeaways available in PodZeus
Introducing the 2026 Thinkies: A Defensive Awards Show
Ben and Cody kick off the 2026 Thinkies, the annual defensive awards show, with excitement and self-awareness about the difficulty of evaluating defense. They introduce the surprise new award: Hustle Play of the Year, which will be revealed at the end. They set the tone with a candid discussion about the complexity of defensive evaluation and the challenge of balancing metrics, film study, and intuition.
Best Motor: The Battle of Effort and Minutes
“When you play 30 minutes a game every game, then you're pacing yourself a little differently. So for me, I ended up valuing someone like White over Ugo in that equation.”
Best Hands: Kaysen Wallace’s Steal Dominance
“One of the great exercises I'll say in preparing for this was differentiating between the Oklahoma City defenders... But then when you really get down to it and you have the ballot in front, it's like, all right, but this guy actually have better hands than this guy.”
Best Point of Attack Defender: Asar Thompson’s Cyborg Defense
“There's something almost magical about the way that this guy is able to just like be a cyborg and move around the court in the way. It doesn't make sense.”
Most Versatile Defender: Scottie Barnes’ Defensive IQ
“He's just the passing, which I know was the thinkies. We're not talking about that right now. But what he brings defensively across the court. He's always flying around.”
“When other players pass the ball in the NBA, defenses react to that pass. Derek White, when he's in that situation, he anticipates that pass, right?”
“It's not merely just coverage versatility, I can switch, I can drop, I can come to the level, I can hedge, whatever. Wemby's so good you almost don't need to hedge.”
“He's just going to make it so the paint and everything inside like 15 feet is impossible to get to.”
Hosts
Ben
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Cody
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Derek White
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Asar Thompson
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Victor Weminyama
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Scottie Barnes
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Kaysen Wallace
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Alex Caruso
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Lou Dort
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Draymond Green
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