NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award
In the NBA, Manu Ginóbili, a key contributor to four San Antonio Spurs championships in the 21st century and the centerpiece of Argentina's Olympic gold medal team in 2004, was the next-to-last pick in the 1999 NBA draft. Another notable draft steal is Isaiah Thomas, who was selected as the 60th and last pick in the 2011 NBA draft, but emerged as an All-Star in 2017 and led his team to the No.1 seed in the Eastern Conference that same year. Draymond Green, who was selected as the 35th pick of the 2012 NBA draft, was a key contributor to the Golden State Warriors winning the 2015, 2017, and 2018 NBA Finals. Green also won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2017. Nikola Jokić, a Serbian who was selected as the 41st pick in 2014 NBA draft, remained in Europe for the 2014–15 season to develop his skills before arriving in the NBA in 2015. In his second season, he quickly became a solid post playmaker, averaging about 16.7 ppg, 4.9 apg, and 9.8 rpg. He was also named to the All-NBA Team in both 2019 (first team) and 2020 (second team), and was voted in as an All-Star in both seasons before being named league MVP in 2021. Marc Gasol is also another example as he was selected as the 48th pick by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2007 NBA draft, but was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in a package that sent his older brother Pau to the Lakers. Like his brother Pau, he became an elite rim protector who could pass, shoot, and score efficiently in the post, and later in his career became an example of a "stretch five", a center capable of effective scoring from three-point range. He was also the 2013 NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and he helped the Toronto Raptors win their first championship in 2019.