He was defensively adept and indeed as slippery as "mantequilla"..but he had a too potent, effective and oft used offense to be considered a "defensive fighter"..he made things happen with his offensive weaponry too frequently to have to rely excessively on his defense.
IMO he was more an offensive fighter than a defensive fighter. His offence was spectacular. Theirs his second fight with Urbina at Lightweight and his first fight with Pruitt at Lightwelter. But his best performance IMO is the first Cokes fight. Hit the nail right on the head