Jrue Holiday has only been voted to the All-Defensive First Team and Second Teams one time apiece, but he is lobbying for a place again this season. 

“Man, I feel like I'm the Defensive Player of the Year every year,” Holiday told Yahoo Sports in an exclusive phone interview. “I'm not joking about that. And I know this is my opinion, and other people have different opinions and they'll probably think I'm crazy. But I think what I bring defensively on the court, a lot of people don't really do, to be completely honest. 

“I feel like I should be in the conversation every year. I’m being serious. This isn't the first year I've been playing defense this way.”

Holiday has been assigned to 584 defensive matchups against the top 10 scorers in the league, the most of any player.

Rudy Gobert and Ben Simmons have most frequently been mentioned as candidates for Defensive Player of the Year. 

“I don't know, but maybe because I'm not flashy,” Holiday said to Yahoo Sports. “I'm super low-key, and I don't need much attention, I don't want much attention. I don't talk trash, and I'm not really that loud. Maybe it's just more like a business transaction. I go out there and do my job. And then once my job is done, I go home and chill with my family. But I'm not popular, and I'm OK with that. I don't want to be popular. If I'm not on TV a lot, and you don't see me playing defense, you don't see me doing what I do. The Lakers are on TV, Boston's on TV, but when I was in New Orleans, we weren't on TV as much as we wanted to be. So maybe that's a part of the reason why I’m overlooked. 

“Does it make me mad? No. I'm OK with kind of being under the radar. I'm not a flashy person, so these are things that I can't control. I know a lot of guys that hoop respect my game just like I respect theirs. I feel like that means more to me. Unfortunately, the players don’t have a vote.”

Andre Iguodala of the Miami Heat called Holiday the “best defender in the league.” Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard said, “To me, [Jrue’s] the best defender in the league. Like, out of the guards, I think he’s the best.”