The NBA announced on Tuesday that Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis, two standout big men during their time as college players at Kentucky, were selected to the All-Defense First Team.
Consistently recognized as one of the league’s best defenders, Adebayo earns a spot on the first team for the first time in 2023–24 after being named to the second team the previous four seasons. In contrast, Davis makes his third appearance on the starting lineup in his professional career and is selected to the NBA All-Defense team for the fifth time in total.
Adebayo averaged a career-high 10.4 rebounds per game in 71 Miami Heat regular season games this season, including 8.1 on the defensive end. In addition, he claimed 66 total blocks (0.9 per game) and 81 total steals (1.1 per game).
Adebayo, a two-way star, averaged 19.3 points per game on 52.1 percent shooting and 3.9 assists per game by the end of the regular season. In his seven-year NBA career, he was named an NBA All-Star for the third time, and he guided the Heat to their fifth consecutive postseason berth.
In recent years, Adebayo has been a frequent front-runner to be named the NBA’s best defender. The big man has placed among the top five in the Defensive Player of the Year voting in each of the last five seasons, including a career-high third place performance in 2023–2024.
Adebayo, a two-way star, averaged 19.3 points per game on 52.1 percent shooting and 3.9 assists per game by the end of the regular season. In his seven-year NBA career, he was named an NBA All-Star for the third time, and he guided the Heat to their fifth consecutive postseason berth.
In recent years, Adebayo has been a frequent front-runner to be named the NBA’s best defender. The big man has placed among the top five in the Defensive Player of the Year voting in each of the last five seasons, including a career-high third place performance in 2023–2024.
This season, Davis was also a formidable offensive threat, ranking 15th in the NBA in scoring per game with a 55.6% field goal percentage.
In the course of his incredible NBA career, Davis has won nine NBA All-Star selections, four All-NBA First Team selections (in 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2020), an NBA Championship in 2020, and the MVP award for the 2017 NBA All-Star Game. During a season in which the Chicago native started every 40 games for UK, Davis was named the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player and the National Player of the Year while playing a key role on Kentucky’s 2012 national championship squad. He led the team in scoring (14.2) and rebounding (10.4) per game, and with 186 swats, he established the program record for single-season blocks. The New Orleans Pelicans selected him with the first overall choice in the 2012 NBA draft.
Alumni of Kentucky men’s basketball continue to have a significant influence on the NBA landscape. With 26 former student-athletes on NBA opening day rosters in 2023–24, UK topped the nation for a record 12 seasons running. The nation also had the most representation in the NBA Playoffs, with 22 of them. The Wildcats created history at the 2024 NBA All-Star game when a record-breaking seven players were selected as All-Stars.
The Wildcats have already had success in the 2023–24 NBA award season. Apart from Adebayo and Davis’ selections to the All-Defensive Team, Tyrese Maxey was named the KIA NBA Most Improved Player and the recipient of the NBA’s Sportsmanship Award, Karl-Anthony Towns was awarded the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award, and Cason Wallace was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.Adebayo was the only player in a Wildcats season to start every game for a team that finished first in the SEC Tournament and made it to the Elite Eight in 2016–17. He was recognized as an All-SEC Freshman Team and All-SEC Second Team member. Averaging 13.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game, Adebayo was selected by the Heat with the 14th overall pick in 2017.
In his twelfth NBA season, Davis joins Adebayo as a selection to the NBA All-Defensive Team. In 2023–24, the center for the Los Angeles Lakers recorded career-high total rebounds per game (12.6) and defensive rebounds per game (9.5) rankings that placed him third and second in the league, respectively. In addition, Davis averaged 1.2 steals per game and was fourth in the league in both total blocks (178) and blocks per game (2.3).