Sullinger's defense

[incoherent]

Defensive Rating
1.   Hassan Whiteside ▪ MIA   93.2
2.   Tim Duncan ▪ SAS   93.4
3.   Kawhi Leonard ▪ SAS   94.4
4.   Andre Drummond ▪ DET   96.6
5.   LaMarcus Aldridge ▪ SAS   97.8
6.   Paul Millsap ▪ ATL   97.9
7.   Danny Green ▪ SAS   97.9
8.   Jared Sullinger ▪ BOS   97.9
9.   DeAndre Jordan ▪ LAC   98.2
10.   Pau Gasol ▪ CHI   99.0


Sully is 8th in the entire league in defensive rating.  His defense is almost never pointed out so I figured I would point it out. 

[straightouttabahstun]

Interesting. I've liked the maturity Sully has shown this year. His defense and offense have gotten better and he seems to have overall grown up a little bit. Keeping him around on a reasonable contract would be great.

[Dino Pitino]

A couple of games ago he was 5th. The interesting thing is that he's also a few whole points better than the Celtics' next best players. So he's not necessarily piggybacking. Is it just a byproduct of being the leading defensive rebounder on a great defensive team where most of the defense is coming from guards and wings whose impact isn't really captured by box score metrics? Or is he legitimately that good of a defender? What do the other advanced stats say?

[Tr1boy]

Has really improved.  Needs to keep developing his body

[GryphMinuteMan]

Surprised  Paul Millsap is on that list too.

[Vermont Green]

The list is interesting and I know that no stat can capture individual defense completely but the players on that list seem to me to all be really good defensive players.  Interesting that there are 3 Spurs on the list.  There is probably some affect from the team defense perspective but overall, it is a good sign for Sullinger to be on that list.

When I see Sullinger play, I see a very smart player with good awareness of all the players around him.  He doesn't make big flashy blocks but he gets where he needs to be.

[PhoSita]

Sullinger has greatly improved in terms of position defense, using what length he has to contest without fouling.  He's also our best defensive rebounder (not an area of strength for the Celts).

Playing next to a guy like Amir has really helped him to shine, too.

Sully's excellent defense and continued competence on the boards is what keeps him playable, despite his Rondo-esque offensive habits (some weeks he's great, other weeks he's scoring 7-8 ppg on 35% shooting).

[spikelovetheCelts]

The list is interesting and I know that no stat can capture individual defense completely but the players on that list seem to me to all be really good defensive players.  Interesting that there are 3 Spurs on the list.  There is probably some affect from the team defense perspective but overall, it is a good sign for Sullinger to be on that list.

When I see Sullinger play, I see a very smart player with good awareness of all the players around him.  He doesn't make big flashy blocks but he gets where he needs to be.

KG taught him well.

[GratefulCs]

Way to go Sully!

[TheFlex]

Has really improved.  Needs to keep developing his body

Agreed with this. Does he have a thyroid issue or something? I think it would almost take some effort to gain weight during the season, which he consistently seems to do.

Regardless, Sully has had a great season relative to expectations.

[kozlodoev]

Defensive Rating
1.   Hassan Whiteside ▪ MIA   93.2
2.   Tim Duncan ▪ SAS   93.4
3.   Kawhi Leonard ▪ SAS   94.4
4.   Andre Drummond ▪ DET   96.6
5.   LaMarcus Aldridge ▪ SAS   97.8
6.   Paul Millsap ▪ ATL   97.9
7.   Danny Green ▪ SAS   97.9
8.   Jared Sullinger ▪ BOS   97.9
9.   DeAndre Jordan ▪ LAC   98.2
10.   Pau Gasol ▪ CHI   99.0


Sully is 8th in the entire league in defensive rating.  His defense is almost never pointed out so I figured I would point it out.

Is this from BBRef? It's worthless.

[Dino Pitino]

Defensive Rating
1.   Hassan Whiteside ▪ MIA   93.2
2.   Tim Duncan ▪ SAS   93.4
3.   Kawhi Leonard ▪ SAS   94.4
4.   Andre Drummond ▪ DET   96.6
5.   LaMarcus Aldridge ▪ SAS   97.8
6.   Paul Millsap ▪ ATL   97.9
7.   Danny Green ▪ SAS   97.9
8.   Jared Sullinger ▪ BOS   97.9
9.   DeAndre Jordan ▪ LAC   98.2
10.   Pau Gasol ▪ CHI   99.0


Sully is 8th in the entire league in defensive rating.  His defense is almost never pointed out so I figured I would point it out.

Is this from BBRef? It's worthless.

Why?

[jr_3421]

My only problem with Sully is that because of his weight, he has to play C and Amir has to defend more on the perimeter. That's where we lose any bit of shotblocking potential.

[loco_91]

Sully's interior D has become good, and his rebounding ability is incredible. That stat definitely overrates him, as he doesn't do a great job on the perimeter, doesn't switch onto guards, doesn't break up transition plays, and he isn't an intimidating shot blocker. But he's surprisingly good at being in the right place to cut off penetration, and he has really good hands - he can get a hand on the ball before his man goes up for the shot, which mitigates his lack of explosiveness. And the really big thing is his defensive rebounding - he blocks out so well, and if he can get a hand on the ball, he's incredibly good at reeling it in.

[kozlodoev]

Defensive Rating
1.   Hassan Whiteside ▪ MIA   93.2
2.   Tim Duncan ▪ SAS   93.4
3.   Kawhi Leonard ▪ SAS   94.4
4.   Andre Drummond ▪ DET   96.6
5.   LaMarcus Aldridge ▪ SAS   97.8
6.   Paul Millsap ▪ ATL   97.9
7.   Danny Green ▪ SAS   97.9
8.   Jared Sullinger ▪ BOS   97.9
9.   DeAndre Jordan ▪ LAC   98.2
10.   Pau Gasol ▪ CHI   99.0


Sully is 8th in the entire league in defensive rating.  His defense is almost never pointed out so I figured I would point it out.

Is this from BBRef? It's worthless.

Why?

Because the team component in the calculation is so strong that it tells you next to nothing about the actual individual defensive ability of the player.

It's also a box score calculation, so in general players that post some defensive stats and play on teams that are strong defensively will score high.