DPOY

Sports abbreviation · Basketball

DPOY
Stands forDefensive Player of the Year
CategoriesSports

DPOY stands for Defensive Player of the Year, a basketball abbreviation.

Annual award for the season's best defender. The NBA trophy, named for Hakeem Olajuwon since 2022-23, is voted by media members, and the NFL presents an AP version.

Example: Rudy Gobert won his fourth DPOY award in 2024, tying the NBA record.

Usage notes

The NBA has given the award since 1982-83, when Sidney Moncrief won it. Gobert, Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace share the record with four each. In the NFL, Aaron Donald, J.J. Watt and Lawrence Taylor each won it three times, Taylor first as a rookie in 1981.

More basketball abbreviations

  • BPG – Blocks per game
  • BPM – Box Plus/Minus
  • C – Center (American football)
  • COY – Coach of the Year
  • DHO – Dribble handoff
  • DNP – Did not play
  • DREB – Defensive rebounds
  • DRtg – Defensive rating
  • DTD – Day-to-day
  • eFG% – Effective field goal percentage
  • FG – Field goal (American football)
  • FG% – Field goal percentage

See all 52 basketball abbreviations →

Edited by the AbbreviationList.com team. Spotted an error or a missing meaning? Contact us.