Lu Dort Left Off NBA's All Defensive Teams

Lu Dort's received votes weren't enough, as the lockdown defender was left off of the NBA's All Defensive Teams that were announced Tuesday afternoon.

Full list of All-Defensive Team voting results.

Both Lu Dort and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander received votes. pic.twitter.com/ljaylSaZgH
— Ross Lovelace (@Rosslovelace) May 9, 2023

Dort led the Thunder with nine total points, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made an appearance with three points.

The Arizona State product tallied one First Team vote and seven Second Team votes. Despite not being selected, his role in Oklahoma City has become vital to the team's operation.

His reputation of being one of the NBA's top perimeter pests only grew over the course of the season, as many of the league's most talented players openly discussed the difficulties of being guarded by Dort.

Damian Lillard was the most recent superstar to praise Dort's defensive prowess, going as far as calling him the best defender in the NBA.

"Lu Dort," Lillard answered. “I think he has the perfect balance of strength, quickness, speed and desire to do it. And he’s young. So I just think he is the best at it.”

His offensive numbers didn't jump off the page this past season, but his defensive output and effort remained the same. Defense is, after all, what earned Dort a five-year, $82.5 million deal in Oklahoma City.

In his exit interview, he mentioned his need for better shot selection and overall improvement in the scoring department, which would go a long way. Regardless, his versatility as a defender is what the Thunder paid for, and improvement elsewhere is icing on the cake.

It's difficult to describe just how valuable Dort’s defensive production is. In addition to matching up against the opposing team's best player on a nightly basis, he's an elite team defender and understands what Mark Daigneault's philosophy. Dort draws plenty of charges both on-ball and off-ball, winning the Thunder multiple extra possessions each game.

Sam Presti made his thoughts clear during Oklahoma City's exit interviews, openly discussing just how important Dort is to the current team.

“If you just watch him night-to-night or you have to game plan for him,” said Presti. “He’s a guy you have to prepare for every single game when you play us.

“There’s some people not watching the games if he’s not an All-Defensive player. If you talk to the coaches, he’s the one keeping them up at night. He does it in a way that’s so consistent and not flamboyant.”

It seems like only a matter of team before Dort stakes his claim on an All Defensive team.

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