The three contenders for this year's Defensive player of the Year award included Mikal Bridges Marcus Smart, and Rudy Gobert. In the announcement earlier this week, Marcus Smart is the first guard since Gary Payton to win the honorable prize with NBA 2K23 MT.

There was a lot of debate about who should have received this year's award. For example, Bam Adebayo showed discontent about not being selected as an official finalist. Two-time award winner Giannis Antetokounmpo did not make the cut as well. Rudy Gobert, who has won the award multiple times has also been a disappointment.

The key question to be asked is: what attributes or stats are most significant in determining the best defensive player? An article by Bleacher Report explains that the best defensive player is one who excels both individually and in a group. I am in agreement and believe that the best defensive player performs throughout the court, and not just on the paint or perimeter.

NBA 2K23 is video game that allows you to replicate the real-world impact of NBA players. As an avid player on the field, I chose to highlight the key defensive characteristics that the game offers to determine the most efficient defensive player out of the three finalist.

The simulation is produced using an NBA Playoffs mode and entering each team in the correct place to accurately reflect the actual game structure. NBA 2K23 then runs the games through an automated system. The system plays out every playoff round by determining who won each game before moving to the next round.

The first round had few surprises, as the majority of the big teams were able to take down their opponents easily. Matches that featured teams that were lower in the rankings were nail-biters with those between the Mavericks and Jazz combination, which played through the entire seven-game set despite the absence of NBA 2K23 cover athlete Luka Doncic in the first game and two.

The most surprising thing could be the seventh-seed Brooklyn Nets defeating the second-seed Boston Celtics in six games and that's mainly because the Celtics are already 2-0 in the opening round. One prediction that's most likely to come true is the Philadelphia 76ers taking down Toronto Raptors. Toronto Raptors, as the series is currently 3-1 in Philadelphia's advantage with Buy NBA 2K Coins.

The traits outlined as being Perimeter Defense, Interior Defense, Help Defense IQ, and Defensive Consistency as well as Defensive Consistency. The candidate who had the highest total attribute score from these categories was deemed the winner. Below is how each candidate did.