bajaden
Hall of Famer
Actually Nene is noted for his solid defense. Is he Dalembert on the boards or as a shot blocker? No, but that doesn't mean he's not as a good or better a defender in some other areas. You shouldn't underrate the ability to do little things like understand team defense and team rebounding, catching the ball in the paint and finishing regularly, setting good screens, helping an offense flow, etc.
You make a good point. There is more to defense than shotblocking, and I'm by not means taking away anything from the elite shotblockers in the league. Of which there are few! As an example, the Kings have been killed by the pick and roll in the past, and defending the pick and roll has nothing to do with shotblocking, although it can come into play. There are several different ways to defend the pick and roll, and by the same token, there are several variations of the pick and roll that can be used to adjust to those defenses. So ultimately, it comes down to recognition by the defending team. Which ususally means a team with the most experience has the best chance of succeeding.
So where am I going with this? Dalembert is merely OK at defending the pick and roll and Nene is very good at defending the pick and roll. Actually, last season Cousins pick and roll defense was at times better than Dalemberts, but his recognition was poor. I can't tell you how many times they pressed the ball with Cousins, Dalembert stepped into the lane to cut it off, but they got backdoored because someone else forgot to rotate to the basket. Poor recognition! But thats what makes the pick and roll so effective. It puts pressure on the defense to react, and then the offense adjusts to that reaction.
If our quest is perfection, its a waste of time. There is no perfect player. whether its Dalembert, Nene, Chandler, Gasol etc., they all have flaws, but they all bring something to the table. All four mentioned are talented, and would be a desirable addition to just about any team. So I won't be upset with any of them. I have my perference, just like everyone else, but any of those four would be a win/win as far as I'm concerned. My personal preference? Chandler!
Why? Because he's a little more athletic than Dalembert, which helps when having to cover some the PF's in the league. He's not quite the shotblocker that Dally is, but he probably alters as many shots if not more. And thats the real bottom line for a shotblocker. How many shots or decisions do you alter? Because the 1.5 shots a game you block, in and of themselves are not significant. He's also a better man on man position defender. He's hard to move on the block. Plus, Chandler is a total team player. He cares not how many shots he takes in a game. He never demands the ball.