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Fortunately, independent sources, led by 82games.com, have moved to fill in some of the gaps. We can now track how a team's defense performs with and without a player on the floor (using net defensive plus-minus, the difference per 100 possessions in these ratings), have an idea of which players are the best at drawing charges and have very rough estimates of performance by opposing players at the same position.

Last year, I used these numbers and my own scouting to pick All-Defensive Teams as part of my "Every Play Counts" series at 82games.com. Every Play Counts has fallen by the wayside this year because I've been busy covering the Sonics, but the All-Defensive Teams are back for a second straight season. This year, as an added bonus, Sonics Assistant Coach Gordon Chiesa shared his All-Defensive Teams with me as well.

When the NBA's 30 head coaches vote for the All-Defensive team, they are not permitted to pick players from their own teams, so neither Gordie nor I considered any Sonics players. However, we did slightly tweak the format. The official voting considers only guards, forwards and centers. We broke the selections down into the five positions. Those designations aren't exact, but we tried to reflect where a player actually plays for his team.

Point Guard

Kirk Hinrich, Chicago
No defender impresses me more in person than Hinrich, who has done an excellent job defending Ray Allen over the last three seasons. Hinrich is better defending bigger players like Allen and in actuality defends twos more than points (so much for that disclaimer above), but he does start at point guard for Chicago. He's a physical defender who knows all the tricks and exerts a great deal of energy on the defensive end.

Devin Harris, Dallas
I wasn't really considering Harris before seeing Gordie's selections, but his numbers are extremely impressive. Dallas' Defensive Rating is 10.2 points per 100 possessions better with Harris on the floor, the best mark of anyone I considered. Harris is extremely quick, which makes him dangerous with the ball in the hands but also effective defending the perimeter.

Honorable Mention:
Chris Duhon, Chicago - I was very close to putting Duhon ahead of Harris. He and Hinrich form the best defensive backcourt in the league.
Jason Kidd, New Jersey - Sometimes struggles against the league's jets, but an excellent intelligent team defender.
Eric Snow, Cleveland - No longer the standout defender he was in Philadelphia, Snow still has the size to defend either guard position.

Shooting Guard

Anthony Parker, Toronto
Parker has helped key Toronto's remarkable defensive turnaround that has led the Raptors to the Atlantic Division title. Parker isn't quite as physical as the stereotypical wing stopper, but he's an excellent athlete with good size and length for the position at 6-6. Opposing shooting guards have just a 47.5% effective field-goal percentage against Parker (league average is 49.6%). Toronto struggled defensively when parker sprained his ankle early in March.

Raja Bell, Phoenix
Bell led the league in drawing offensive fouls a year ago. Through early February, when 82games.com reprised those rankings, he was a little bit off from that pace but still fourth in the league (four of the top nine made either first- or second-team in my picks). Bell's presence has not always had a bottom-line impact on his team's defense, but the Suns are 2.9 points better with Bell on the floor this season and he continues to make opposing stars work hard for their points.

Honorable Mention:
Manu Ginobili, San Antonio - Benefits from playing alongside the league's best stopper, but very good on defense in his own right.
Richard Hamilton, Detroit - Considered a liability in Washington, Hamilton has improved to the point where he is now occasionally deployed as a stopper. (A similar transition: Hersey Hawkins, considered a poor defender when he came to the Sonics in 1995. Eventually, he would frequently defend quick point guards in the playoffs while annual All-D pick Gary Payton was moved onto shooting guards.)
Quinton Ross, L.A. Clippers - Like many of his Clippers teammates, Ross has not entirely been able to duplicate the magic of 2005-06, but he's still excellent one-on-one.

Small Forward

Bruce Bowen, San Antonio
I say this both as an analyst and an employee of a Western Conference opponent: Eventually Bowen has to lose a step, right? At 35, Bowen has had another outstanding season. With Bowen on the floor, the Spurs allowed a microscopic 97.0 points per 100 possessions (San Antonio narrowly leads the league with a 100.9 Defensive Rating overall). Since an early controversy with the Knicks over allegedly dirty tactics, Bowen has stayed out of the news this season.

Shane Battier, Houston
I picked Battier for the first team a year ago, with Bowen sliding to shooting guard. Nothing has happened this season to change the conclusion that Battier is one of the league's best and most underrated defenders. If anything, that has only been reinforced by the total, utter collapse of the Memphis defense from second in the league to 30th (dead last) after trading Battier (and Eddie Jones and firing Mike Fratello). Battier isn't in the Bowen/Bell mold, but opposing teams score less when he is on the floor and opposing forwards are less effective against him. That's the bottom line for defense.

Honorable Mention:
Josh Howard, Dallas - Long arms, basketball IQ make him invaluable to the Mavericks defense.
Shawn Marion, Phoenix - Piles up the steals (1.8 per game) and blocks (1.2), but can be scored on one-on-one; good, but not great.
Tayshaun Prince, Detroit - A victim of the defensive depth at the small forward position.

Power Forward

Tim Duncan, San Antonio
Guards and centers and Bruce Bowen come and go, but the San Antonio defense is positively metronomic in its consistency. If the Spurs hold off Houston to lead the league in Defensive Rating this year, it will be the eighth time in the last nine years. The other year, they finished third. There have been two constants in that period: Duncan and Gregg Popovich. It's hard to say just exactly how much of the credit for the defensive juggernaut deserves to go to Duncan and how much to Popovich, but each complements the other and there is plenty of credit to go around. Duncan is the anchor; he has terrific individual statistics and always has a positive impact on the Spurs defense when he's on the floor. That is why he is this year's Every Play Counts Defensive Player of the Year.

Jason Collins, New Jersey
Collins is averaging 2.3 points per game (4.0 per 40 minutes) this season. He is shooting 37.7% from the field and 47.2% from the free-throw line and has not hit a three-pointer all year. He averages just 4.2 rebounds per game. Yet still he has started 72 times in 74 games and averages 23 minutes per game, and while that partly owes to his screen-setting ability, it's almost entirely about his position defense. Collins isn't quick, doesn't block shots, he's just always in the right place at the right time and uses strength to his advantage. The Nets consistently defend better with Collins on the floor, and this year has been no exception - New Jersey's defense improves by 8.2 points per 100 possessions.

Honorable Mention:
Kevin Garnett, Minnesota - Can be scored on by going directly at him, but size, length and athleticism make him very effective, especially in zones.
Chuck Hayes, Houston - Another key player in the Rockets defense. With Hayes on the floor, Houston allows just 95.8 points per 100 possessions. I don't think anyone in the league can top that.
Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas - Nowitzki may never shake the irk (no D) reputation, but the numbers bear out his dramatic improvement; opposing power forwards struggle against the Mavericks.

Center

Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana
O'Neal has gotten plenty of credit overall, but his defense has never specifically gotten the respect it deserves. He's an outstanding shot-blocker who ranks third in the NBA this season with 2.7 per game. Plenty of guys block shots, but O'Neal has been able to translate it into improvement at the team level. Indiana's Defensive Rating is 4.4 points lower with O'Neal on the court, which ranks amongst the leaders at the center position.

Marcus Camby, Denver
Camby leads the league in blocks at 3.1 per game and is also an excellent defensive rebounder. Denver's up-tempo style may have hurt Camby's effectiveness overall, as the Nuggets are actually defending slightly better when Camby on the bench. That's probably largely a fluke, but makes it hard to pick Camby as the first-teamer at the most important defensive position.

Honorable Mention:
Brendan Haywood, Washington - Year in, year out, the Wizards defend better with the oft-maligned Haywood on the floor. He is weak on the defensive glass.
Rasho Nesterovic, Toronto - Another key to the Raptors defensive turnaround. Nesterovic is criticized for being soft, but he can block a shot and is usually in the right place on the floor to use his size.
Ben Wallace, Chicago - Last year's Every Play Counts Defensive Player of the Year, Wallace has yet to entirely fit in with the Bulls, who are actually defending better (by 2.7 points) with him on the bench. I had guessed that might have improved over the course of the season, but using data from BasketballValue.com, that doesn't really seem to be the case. Wallace had a positive impact in the month of February, but has slipped again in March. Wallace deserves an entire column all to himself, but for now the tentative conclusion is that he's not good enough for All-Defensive, but has too impressive of a track record to ignore altogether.

GORDON CHIESA'S ALL-DEFENSIVE PICKS

Sonics Assistant Coach Gordon Chiesa, a veteran of 17 seasons on the bench in the NBA, including 16 in Utah, shares his All-Defensive Picks. Chiesa emphasized the different roles for each position. Perimeter players must be able to stay in front of their man defensively as well as help in the post and recover to their man, while the ability to fight through screens is critical for wing defenders. Big men must be able to defend the post one-on-one and step out to defend the pick-and-roll, while defending to the three-point line has become important for power forwards and shot-blocking ability is critical for centers. First Team: Chauncey Billups, Detroit Raja Bell, Phoenix Shane Battier, Houston Tim Duncan, San Antonio Ben Wallace, Chicago Second Team: Kirk Hinrich, Chicago DeShawn Stevenson, Washington Bruce Bowen, San Antonio Udonis Haslem, Miami Alonzo Mourning, Miami Third Team: Devin Harris, Dallas Quinton Ross, L.A. Clippers Andrei Kirilenko, Utah Elton Brand, L.A. Clippers Marcus Camby, Denver Fourth Team: Jason Kidd, New Jersey Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers Tayshaun Prince, Detroit Chuck Hayes, Houston Mikki Moore, New Jersey