Kawhi Leonard won back-to-back DPOY honors with the Spurs.
The San Antonio Spurs have been one of the most successful franchises over the last 25 years, and they’ve earned some prestigious collective and individual accolades thanks to some elite defensive performances.
Here, we take a look at all the players who were named the Defensive Player of the Year while playing for the Spurs. The list features one of the best on-ball defenders in league history, an elite rim protector, and a shooting guard who used to thrive for the Spurs in the 1980s.
Kawhi Leonard – 2 times (2015, 2016)
Leonard is currently playing for the LA Clippers and was an NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors in 2019. However, the star forward started his career with the Spurs and was a key piece on a team that won the 2014 NBA Finals.
Leonard was named the Defensive Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons in 2014-15 and 2015-16, right after winning his lone ring with the Spurs. Leonard was also named to the First Team All-NBA Defense three seasons in a row with the Spurs between the 2014-15 and 2016-17 seasons. He has seven All-NBA Defense nods and five top 10 finishes in the Defensive Player of the Year voting throughout his career.
David Robinson – 1 time (1992)
Robinson was one of the best big men in the NBA in an era where the league put a premium on post-game, rebounding and inside scoring. However, “The Admiral” was more than just a scoring weapon, as he also turned out to be an elite defender near the rim and won the Defensive Player of the Year award at the end of the 1991-92 season. During that campaign, Robinson averaged 23.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 4.5 blocks and 2.3 steals per game.
Robinson was also named second in the Defensive Player of the Year voting three more times, in the 1990-91, 1992-93 and 1993-94 campaigns. He finished in the top 5 of the voting for that award eight more times, aside from this winning season in 1991-92. He retired at the end of the 2002-03 season and spent his 14-year career in the NBA with the Spurs, averaging 21.1 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.0 blocks, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game across 987 regular-season appearances.
Alvin Robertson – 1 time (1986)
Robertson was the first Spur to win the Defensive Player of the Year award, achieving that feat in the 1985-86 campaign. It was his second year in the NBA, and he was also named the Most Improved Player of the Year while ending in the Second Team All-NBA, Second Team All-Defense and ending 13th in the MVP voting. He averaged 17.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 3.7 steals and 0.5 blocks per game in that award-winning 1985-96 campaign.
