| Basketball Africa League awards and honours |
|---|
| Individual awards |
| Honors |
| Sport | Basketball |
|---|---|
| League | Basketball Africa League |
| Awarded for | Best defensive player in the season of the Basketball Africa League |
| History | |
| First award | 2021 |
| Most wins | 4 players (1 each) |
| Most recent | Jo Lual-Acuil, Al Ahly Ly (2024) |
The Basketball Africa League Dikembe Mutombo Defensive Player of the Year is an annual Basketball Africa League (BAL) award given to the best defensive player of a given season. The award is named after Congolese basketball legend Dikembe Mutombo. The award was first handed out in the inaugural season to Anas Osama Mahmoud.[1]
Players of the four teams that qualified for the semifinals can be selected. The selection committee exists of a number of BAL experts, including the head coaches of all teams.
Jo Lual-Acuil, winner of the award in 2024, is the only player to win both the Defensive Player of the Year and the Most Valuable Player in the same season.[2]