Gasol won't miss the postseason. (Getty Images)
Marc Gasol beat out LeBron James as the league's top defensive player. (Getty Images)

It's official: Marc Gasol has been named the league's top defender this season.

The league announced Wednesday that Gasol is the Defensive Player of the Year, beating out LeBron James, Serge Ibaka, Joakim Noah and teammate Tony Allen.

Gasol, in terms of traditional stats, doesn't necessarily impress. He averaged just 1.7 blocks, 1.3 a game behind league leader Ibaka. Gasol pulled in 7.8 rebounds a game, almost five a game fewer than Dwight Howard, the league leader.

But Gasol's impact can be found simply in this: With him on the floor, per NBA.com/stats, the Grizzlies enjoyed an incredible 95.4 defensive rating. With Gasol off the floor, their defense had a 102.2 rating. That's almost seven points per 100 possessions difference.

Gasol anchored the league's second-best overall defense and while he wasn't swatting shots or dominating the defensive glass, his high intelligence in defending the pick-and-roll and understanding space makes him a very excellent choice.

Gasol pulled in 212 points and 30 first-place votes beating out LeBron (149 points), Ibaka (122 points), Noah (107) and Allen (102). Rounding out the top 10 is Tim Duncan, Larry Sanders, Paul George, Andre Iguodala and Roy Hibbert.