Milwaukee Bucks: Ranking Brook Lopez among NBA’s best shot-blockers
By Adam McGee
Hassan Whiteside
Hassan Whiteside is almost certainly the most mercurial and unpredictable defender on this list but, when he’s locked in, there certainly aren’t many shot blockers like him.
As the season finished up for its current hiatus, Whiteside held a clear lead as the NBA’s most potent shot-blocker, averaging 3.1 rejections per game. It’s not all that common for players to average over three blocks a night in the modern game, so that immediately makes you sit up and take notice.
Whiteside previously achieved that same feat back in 2015-16 when he led the NBA with a truly ridiculous average of 3.7 blocks per game.
The 30-year-old’s defensive discipline can certainly suffer in exchange for him pumping up those totals, and there’s no doubting that has contributed to reduced roles for him at times in the past. That certainly goes some way to explaining the fluctuations in Whiteside’s numbers over the year.
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Whiteside is certainly in the running for the title of worst overall defender among this collection of outstanding shot blockers, as the rest of his game isn’t necessarily as well-rounded as the others. Still, there can be no denying his shot-blocking, and the fact that he’s simply capable of putting up numbers that most players could never even dream of.