Victor Wembanyama became the NBA’s youngest Defensive Player of the Year at 22, winning the award by a historic unanimous vote and cementing his reputation as a premier defender.
Victor Wembanyama was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year Monday, April 20 and made history twice: becoming the first unanimous pick for the award and the youngest winner.
Wembanyama, 22 years 106 days, is also the first winner under 23 years old to win the award. The previous youngest winner of DPOY was Dwight Howard, who was 23 years, 128 days when he won the award for the 2008-09 season as a member of the Orlando Magic.
He is the fourth San Antonio Spurs player to be named Defensive Player of the Year, joining Alvin Robertson, David Robinson and Kawhi Leonard
Now, despite his youth, Wembanyama finally adds one of the biggest NBA awards to his trophy case.
That might sound a little impatient, given that 2025-26 was only his third year in the league. But Wemby’s had a legitimate argument as one of, if not the best defender in the NBA ever since his rookie season when he averaged an unreal 3.6 blocks per game and finished second in voting behind his fellow countryman Rudy Gobert. He probably would’ve had a shot at the award in 2024-25 too, if it wasn’t for blood clots that cut his season short after just 46 games.All things Spurs: Latest San Antonio Spurs news, schedule, roster, stats, injury updates and more.
Third time was indeed the charm for Wembanyama, who led the league in blocks (3.1) for the third straight season, joining Dikembe Mutumbo (1993-94 through 1995-96) and Marcus Camby (2005-06 through 2007-08) as the only players to do so. Wemby served as the anchor for a Spurs defense that ranked third in the NBA in defensive rating (110.4) and limited teams to 111.5 points per game (eighth in the NBA) and a 45.1% opponent field goal percentage (fourth in the NBA).
Wembanyama’s 627 total blocks since entering the league in 2023 are 203 more than any other active player.
Wembanyama beat out finalists Chet Holmgren of the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Detroit Pistons‘ Ausar Thompson for the award; he is also a finalist for NBA Most Valuable Player. He’ll have to outdo Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic in the polls but if he does, Wembanyama would be just the fourth player in NBA history to win both MVP and DPOY in the same year – a feat only Michael Jordan (1987-88), Hakeem Olajuwon (1993-94) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (2019-20) have accomplished.
Award winners will be announced as the week goes on, with Clutch Player of the Year scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, Sixth Man of the Year on Wednesday, April 22, the Sportsmanship Award on Thursday, April 23 and Most Improved Player on Friday, April 24.
