He raises his eyebrows, with a yellow smile, when a journalist asks him about his personal goals. And notably mentions the title of best defender of the year. During his back-to-school press conference, Nick Claxton did not hide his resentment regarding the various trophies awarded last year to reward defensive work.
“ I went from the top three for the title of best defender of the year to ending the season with nothing at all. When K.D. (Kevin Durant) and Kyrie (Irving) are gone, it’s as if my name has disappeared from the map. It makes me boil. Without even talking about the title of best defender, I was robbed at the level of the best defensive five “, rails the Nets pivot.
The name of the latter had emerged among the credible candidates for “DPOY” during last season. According to the New York Post, he was even the second highest placed player behind future winner Jaren Jackson Jr, at the beginning of February. But the departures of the team’s two superstars caused the Nets and their pivot to lose exposure.
When it came time to vote, Nic Claxton found himself light years behind his Grizzlies counterpart, finishing only in 9th place, tied with Joel Embiid. And, despite having one of the best “defensive win shares” (estimation of the number of victories to which a player has contributed thanks to his defensive impact) of the applicants, he remained far from the best defensive five in the league, even finishing behind his teammate Mikal Bridges to the votes.
“Free agent” at the end of the year
“ My stats were incredible. I know you could say it was my first year like this but I stabilized the entire defense. I was good when we ‘switched’, when we took two but… It’s behind us », attempts to sweep away the pivot who intends to use this experience as additional motivation.
The contractual dimension will also come into play because the 24-year-old is starting his final year of contract, for just under $10 million. Increasing or at least maintaining his statistical performance from last year could allow him to double this amount.
“ He simply has to do his job. He’s going to get $100 million just for doing his job. He’s in a situation where even if he screws up, he’ll still get between 70 and 80 million. The only way to screw up your contract is to try to do too much », Analyzes Spencer Dinwiddie, whose teammate also says he has worked on his 3-point shot, which he will not hesitate to use.
Luka Doncic’s former teammate is categorical: “ Everyone needs to write it down, Spencer Dinwiddie said, ‘Nic Claxton is the best defender in the league and he was snubbed for DPOY.’ »
