Cavaliers Now

Beekman and Dunn Named to Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watchlist

Virginia was one of only two programs to have multiple players selected to the watchlist for the nation's most outstanding defensive player

Matt Newton

Beekman and Dunn Named to Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watchlist
Beekman and Dunn Named to Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watchlist /
In this story:

Of the 15 players named to the watchlist for the 2024 Naismith Men's Defensive Player of the Year award, two of them are from the Virginia men's basketball program. UVA joined Kansas as the only two programs to have two players on the list, as both senior guard Reece Beekman and sophomore forward Ryan Dunn were included in the 15-player watchlist, which was revealed on Wednesday. 

The reigning ACC Defensive Player of the Year and a strong candidate to repeat as the winner of that award, Beekman currently leads the conference and is 13th in the country in steals at 2.4 per game. He's also first in the ACC and 17th in the nation in assist to turnover ratio at 3.13. Beekman is averaging a career-high 13.4 points and 6.1 assists per game, all while locking up some of the best guards in the ACC one-on-one. 

Ryan Dunn, meanwhile, is leading the ACC and is 22nd in the nation in blocked shots, averaging 2.2 blocks per game. Dunn is also ninth in the ACC in steals with 1.6 takeaways per contest. The sophomore forward is averaging 9.4 points and 7.3 rebounds per game and is second in the nation in defensive rating at 83.3 and fourth in defensive win shares at 2.1. 

With Beekman and Dunn leading the way, it's no surprise that Virginia once again boasts one of the best defenses in the country, ranking second in scoring defense (56.8 ppg allowed) and seventh in adjusted defensive efficiency on KenPom. 

The Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award as been presented to the most outstanding defensive player in college basketball since 2018. 

Naismith Men's Defensive Player of the Year Watchlist

Adrian "Ace" Baldwin Jr. - Penn State
Reece Beekman - Virginia
Adem Bona - UCLA
Johni Broome - Auburn
Devin Carter - Providence
Ryan Dunn - Virginia
Zach Edey - Purdue
Dajuan Harris Jr. - Kansas
Jaelen House - New Mexico
Ryan Kalkbrenner - Creighton
Tamin Lipsey - Iowa State
Kevin McCullar Jr. - Kansas
Clifford Omoruyi - Rutgers
Jamal Shead - Houston
Zakai Zeigler - Tennessee

Subscribe to the Cavaliers Now Newsletter to receive UVA sports news in your inbox first thing on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday

To stay up to date on all Virginia Cavaliers sports news, follow CavaliersNow on social media:

Facebook: @CavaliersNow
Twitter: @CavaliersNowFN

See more Virginia men's basketball news and content: Virginia Men's Basketball on Sports Illustrated

See more Virginia sports news and content: Virginia Cavaliers on Sports Illustrated

Published
Matt Newton
MATT NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.

Home/Basketball