Naismith Defensive Player of the Year
Recognizing elite defensive performances, the award highlights the best shot-blockers, lockdown defenders, and game-changers on the defensive end of the court.
Each player represents a different team, all of who finished the regular season in the Top 25 AP Poll. Six are from the nation’s Top 10 teams.
Ten Finalists
Lauren Betts, No. 1 UCLA junior and Sedona Prince, No. 6 TCU, lead the frontcourt players, including two senior forwards in No. 15 Ohio State’s Taylor Thierry and No. 23 Florida State’s Makayla Timpson.
Three sophomore stars are in with JuJu Watkins, No. 4 USC, Hannah Hidalgo, No. 8 Notre Dame and Talaysia Cooper, No. 20 Tennessee, plus six backcourt players.
Senior veterans Rori Harmon, No. 5 Texas, Aneesah Morrow, No. 10 LSU and JJ Quinerly, No. 16 West Virginia.
The SEC and Big Ten lead with three semifinalists each, while the AAC and Big 12 have two semifinalists each.
National Player of the Year Candidates
Some of the season’s best defenders are also running for National Player of the Year (POY). Hidalgo, Watkins and Betts are rounding out the leaderboard for the season’s top individual award.
Who Will Make the Cut
Only four of the ten semifinalists will make the final cut on March 18.
The 2024/25 Naismith DPOY will be crowned on April 2nd before the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four begins.
