Denver Nuggets shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope wants to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award this season or make the All-NBA Defensive First Team.
Caldwell-Pope is one of the best defenders in the NBA.
Caldwell-Pope is the Nuggets’ best perimeter defender. At 6-foot-5, KCP can guard point guards, shooting guards, small forwards and power forwards.
The Nuggets won the 2023 championship over the Miami Heat in five games. Caldwell-Pope played excellent two-way basketball for Denver in the 2023 playoffs and he has gotten off to a terrific start this season.
The 30-year-old Caldwell-Pope is averaging 10.2 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.9 steals and 0.6 blocks while shooting 47.8% from the field, 42.9% from beyond the arc and a perfect 100.0% from the free-throw line. The Nuggets have the best record in the NBA at 8-1.
Caldwell-Pope has never made an All-Defensive team before. It will be interesting to see if the Georgia native makes one of the two teams this season.
Caldwell-Pope has career averages of 11.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.3 blocks with the Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers and Nuggets. He signed a two-year, $30 million extension with Denver in July 2022. KCP is making $14.7 million this season. He has a player option worth $15.4 million for next season.
The Nuggets are looking to become the first team since the Golden State Warriors to win back-to-back championships. Golden State won back-to-back rings in 2017 and 2018 over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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