watch every game.” I’m not saying NBA award voters are watching ever single NBA game ever.

But every single game is available. If a voter is comparing Wemby and Gobert, they could watch every game if they wanted to. They could only watch the defensive possessions if they wanted to. They could narrow it to Wemby/Gobert vs. teams with elite centers. The could isolate possessions in which they are credited with a block or defensive stop. There are so many ways to watch players you’re voting for it’s insane. So, voters can identify what is important to them, they can analyze it, and it’s all available.

But in 1987, they couldn’t watch every single game. It was literally impossible. So the only thing they had to compare was the box score.

There’s a huge difference in available information today.