The Women's National Basketball Association's Defensive Player of the Year Award is an annual Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) award given since the league's inaugural season -- 1997, to the top defensive player of the regular season. The winner is selected by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States, each of whom casts a vote for first, second and third place selections. Each first-place vote is worth five points; each second-place vote is worth three points; and each third-place vote is worth one point. The player with the highest point total, regardless of the number of first-place votes, wins the award.
Tamika Catchings has won the defensive player of the year award more times than any other player with the record of 5.
Winners
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| style="background-color:#BBFFFF; border:1px solid #aaaaaa; width:6em"|
|Denotes player who is still active in the WNBA
|-
| style="background-color:#FFE5E5; border:1px solid #aaaaaa; width:6em"|
|Inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
|-
| style="background-color:#FFF8A8; border:1px solid #aaaaaa; width:6em"|
|Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
|-
| style="background-color:#EBFFD6; border:1px solid #aaaaaa; width:6em"|
|Denotes player whose team won championship that year
|-
|Player (X)
|Denotes the number of times the player has won
|-
|Team (X)
|Denotes the number of times a player from this team has won
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width: 100%; text-align:center"
|-
!scope="col"| Season
!scope="col"| Player
!scope="col"| Position
!scope="col"| Nationality
!scope="col"| Team
!scope="col" width="12%"| First-Place Votes
!scope="col" width=5|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 1997
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Teresa Weatherspoon
| Guard
|
| New York Liberty
| 22 out of 37
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 1998
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Teresa Weatherspoon <small>(2)</small>
| Guard
|
| New York Liberty <small>(2)</small>
| 28 out of 45
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 1999
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Yolanda Griffith
| Center
|
| Sacramento Monarchs
| 17 out of 51
|
|-
|scope="row" style="background-color:#EBFFD6; text-align: center"| 2000
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Sheryl Swoopes
| Guard / Forward
|
| Houston Comets
| 33 out of 62
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2001
| Debbie Black
| Guard
|
| Miami Sol
| 22 out of 60
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2002
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Sheryl Swoopes <small>(2)</small>
| Guard / Forward
|
| Houston Comets <small>(2)</small>
| 22 out of 60
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2003
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Sheryl Swoopes <small>(3)</small>
| Guard / Forward
|
| Houston Comets <small>(3)</small>
| 35 out of 54
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2004
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Lisa Leslie
| Center
|
| Los Angeles Sparks
| 27 out of 46
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2005
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Tamika Catchings
| Forward
|
| Indiana Fever
| 35 out of 50
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2006
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Tamika Catchings <small>(2)</small>
| Forward
|
| Indiana Fever <small>(2)</small>
| 43 out of 56
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2007
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Lauren Jackson
| Forward / Center
|
| Seattle Storm
| 20 out of 48
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2008
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Lisa Leslie <small>(2)</small>
| Center
|
| Los Angeles Sparks <small>(2)</small>
| 20 out of 43
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2009
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Tamika Catchings <small>(3)</small>
| Forward
|
| Indiana Fever <small>(3)</small>
| 34 out of 40
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2010
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Tamika Catchings <small>(4)</small>
| Forward
|
| Indiana Fever <small>(4)</small>
| 30 out of 39
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2011
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Sylvia Fowles
| Center
|
| Chicago Sky
| 19 out of 40
|
|-
|scope="row" style="background-color:#EBFFD6; text-align: center"| 2012
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Tamika Catchings <small>(5)</small>
| Forward
|
| Indiana Fever <small>(5)</small>
| 19 out of 41
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2013
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Sylvia Fowles <small>(2)</small>
| Center
|
| Chicago Sky <small>(2)</small>
| 21 out of 39
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2018
| Alana Beard <small>(2)</small>
| Guard / Forward
|
| Los Angeles Sparks <small>(4)</small>
| 16 out of 39
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2019
!scope="row" style="background-color:#BBFFFF"| Natasha Howard
| Guard / Forward
|
| Seattle Storm <small>(2)</small>
| 33 out of 43
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2020
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Candace Parker
| Forward / Center
|
| Los Angeles Sparks <small>(5)</small>
| 16 out of 47
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2021
!scope="row" style="background-color:#FFF8A8"| Sylvia Fowles <small>(4)</small>
| Center
|
| Minnesota Lynx <small>(2)</small>
| 31 out of 49
|
|-
|scope="row" style="background-color:#EBFFD6; text-align: center"| 2022
!scope="row" style="background-color:#BBFFFF"| A'ja Wilson
| rowspan=4| Forward
|
| Las Vegas Aces
| 20 out of 56
|
|-
|scope="row" style="background-color:#EBFFD6; text-align: center"| 2023
!scope="row" style="background-color:#BBFFFF"| A'ja Wilson <small>(2)</small>
|
| Las Vegas Aces <small>(2)</small>
| 32 out of 60
|
|-
|style="text-align: center"| 2024
!scope="row" style="background-color:#BBFFFF"| Napheesa Collier
|
| Minnesota Lynx <small>(3)</small>
| 36 out of 60
|
|-
|rowspan=2| 2025
!scope="row" style="background-color:#BBFFFF"| Alanna Smith
|
| Minnesota Lynx <small>(4)</small>
| rowspan=2| 29 out of 72
| rowspan=2|
|-
!scope="row" style="background-color:#BBFFFF"| A'ja Wilson <small>(3)</small>
| Center
|
| Las Vegas Aces <small>(3)</small>
|}
Multi-time winners
{| class="wikitable"
!Awards
!Player
!Team(s)
!Years
|-
|5
|Tamika Catchings
|Indiana Fever
|2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2012
|-
|4
|Sylvia Fowles
|Chicago Sky / Minnesota Lynx
|2011, 2013, 2016, 2021
|-
| rowspan="2" |3
|Sheryl Swoopes
|Houston Comets
|2000, 2002, 2003
|-
|A'ja Wilson
|Las Vegas Aces
|2022, 2023, 2025
|-
| rowspan="4" |2
|Teresa Weatherspoon
|New York Liberty
|1997, 1998
|-
|Lisa Leslie
|Los Angeles Sparks
|2004, 2008
|-
|Brittney Griner
|Phoenix Mercury
|2014, 2015
|-
|Alana Beard
|Los Angeles Sparks
|2017, 2018
|}
See also
- List of sports awards honoring women