Does any one play defense anymore?

In a time where scoring has taken precedent over any other skill more than ever before, there is a select group of individuals take do pride in the less glamorous side of the ball.

This league showcases most of the absolute best scorers in the world, and a handful of the best scorers in the history of the game. So, to say that anyone can outright stop their opponent no matter the match-up (excluding a healthy Kawhi because, wow!) is almost ridiculous. There are guys, however, that stifle and make their opponents think about their presence defensively, have superb IQ for situational defense, and intangibles that allow them to be a nuisance in any coaches game plan or players agenda.

Before touching on the 5 best individual defenders at each position, there plenty names that have to be mentioned though they did not make the list. Nonetheless, these guys all impact the game on that end of the ball and are known around the league as menaces.

Honorable Mentions

Guards

Patrick Beverly, Marcus Smart, Dejounte Murray, Mike Conley, Ricky Rubio, Jrue Holiday, Rajon Rondo

Avery Bradley, Klay Thompson, Jimmy Butler, Danny Green, Paul George, Josh Richardson, Jaylen Brown, Victor Oladipo

Forwards

Robert Covington, Andre Iguodala, Trevor Ariza, Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, Luc Mbah A Moute, Kevin Durant

Anthony Davis, PJ Tucker, Paul Millsap, Ed Davis

Centers

Clint Capela, Steven Adams, Demarcus Cousins, Al Horford, DeAndre Jordan

The Finalists

Guards

Chris Paul

There are few players that bring to the table the ability to anchor a defense from the point of attack the way Chris Paul has for the latter half of his career. Admittedly a fortuitous gambler early on in his career with an extraordinary sense for steals, Paul has become a far more effective defender late in his career. He has essentially gambled less and stay in front of his man far more. No other guard blends together the situational IQ, lateral quickness, strength, discipline, and strong/quick hands the way CP3 does. The countless intangibles like his heart, innate sense to disrupt pick and roll play, and leadership among other things also tilt the scale even more in his favor. For the first time in six seasons he missed an all defensive 1st team selection, and the first time in seven years he didn't make either of the defensive teams. His impact nonetheless was felt as he was the leading vote getter for all that did not make the team, and the Rockets team was essentially one point better defensively with him in the regular season, and two points better in the post season. Needless to say, his defense has not fallen off even in the latter half of his prime. He is one of the best guard defenders the league has ever seen.

Andre Roberson

Although Roberson did not complete the season it must be noted that they were a top three defense while he was healthy, then dropped to the bottom half of the top ten in his absence. Roberson uniquely possess the size to guard 1-4, the lateral quickness to key in on guards specifically, athleticism to stay in front of any wing, and the strength to guard most four men in todays NBA. He is essentially the NBA's best deployable Swiss Army Knife defender in the ever-switching schemes most teams deploy. No one looks forward to having to deal with Roberson for 48 minutes a night. His +2.3 DBPM speaks volumes to his impact on that end. Roberson was sorely missed by the Thunder who were hurt on the weak side defensively by the Jazz in the first round, and could not stop Donovan Mitchell at all. Insert Roberson, and their defense reaches another level and quite possibly could have been their remedy to the issue the had with Mitchell. Roberson's worth will be seen as he gets back in good health for this upcoming season

Kawhi Leonard

Was there really debate for another option here? A four time all defense selected two time defensive player of the year. I mean we have seen this guy guard the likes of Chris Paul, Steph Curry, Kyrie Irving, Paul George, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis while doing so successfully. We have even seen him win a Finals MVP thanks to his efforts on that end against the aforementioned James. Kawhi is a carbon copy of Scottie Pippen. He is limitless defensively due to his condor-like length and the fact that he is other-worldly discipline. Rarely will you see him come out of his stance, have a misstep, miss an assignment, or fall asleep off the ball. Leonard has tilted the momentum of multiple high stakes contests with his efforts on that end far too many times for there to be any debate as to how great he is on this end of the court. You think about defense, he should be the first to come to mind. He is undoubtedly the golden standard for perimeter defense and is one of the best defenders this league has seen. 

Draymond Green

Another stalwart defensively, Draymond is a guy that brings a lot to the table. One of the most versatile defenders the league has ever seen, he is the anchor to what is turning into a dynastic run for the Warriors. His fingerprints are all over this teams identity not only as the emotional leader, but the defensive anchor as well. In fact, his defense has been so good that the Warriors have been able to win four championships in the last five years with the likes of Zaza Pachulia and Javale McGee as their starting center. Green is ridiculously good as a communicator, has a genuine passion for that end of the court, and has a great IQ for reading defenses from the back line. He can communicate his teammates through any situation on the fly, and is unbelievable in pick and roll play while guarding big men. He has a career 3.8 DBPM and has four all defensive team selections to compliment his 2016-2017 defensive player of the year award. The key cog to the Warriors defensive attack, Draymond has cemented himself as one of the best team defenders in history.

Rudy Gobert

The 2017-2018 defensive player of the year, Gobert captained the defensive attack deployed by coach Quinn Snyder for the Utah Jazz. This team had a ridiculous run where they were 26-5 and won 14 of 15 road contests. This was undoubtedly because of their defense, and the impact of Gobert returning to their line up was evident immediately. The "Stifle Tower" has not had a DRTG over 100 since his rookie season, and has not had a DBPM of under +4.5 since then either. He is superbly skilled at anchoring a defense from the center position and is undoubtedly the most efficient rim protector in the league. He has a good mix of strength, athleticism, quick jumping ability, and shot blocking with his timing. He also averaged 2.3 blocks per game this season as well. The Jazz' defensive rating ballooned to 105.0 when he was not on the court. At 25 years old, he will continue to become better and better with each passing season which means expect for the Jazz to remain relevant with him roaming the paint. 

There are a handful of guys that are serious about business on that end of the court, and these five guys are the best at their respective positions from discipline to disrupting the flow of the offense that is rivaling them on any given night. Although there are not as many defenders as once were in the older days of the NBA, there certainly are guys who still approach that end with great attention to detail. 

So to answer the question, yes! Defense is still played in today's high-scoring NBA.

*All stats and information come directly from basketball-reference.com and are accurate as stated above*