As with everything else seemingly surrounding San Antonio Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama…it appears to be only a matter of time.
At a point this past season, when asked about Rudy Gobert's chances of beating him for the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, the newly crowned Rookie of the Year answered with a response that may have included as much truth as humor.
“I know that Rudy has a very good chance of winning it this year and it would be deserved. Let him win it now because after that, it's no longer his turn.”
With Minnesota Timberwolves big man taking the honor for a record-tying fourth time, it still stands true that no player has ever won Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season.
Wemby finished second for the award. Gobert received 72 of the 99 first-place votes compared to 19 for the Spurs 7-foot-4 center. Anthony Davis, who finished with fewer points than Bam Adebayo in voting overall based on totals, got more first-place votes than the Miami Heat star, four to three. In garnering more points than Davis, Abebayo finished third. Herbert Jones, Jr of the New Orleans Pelicans rounded out the top five while Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday finished sixth while getting a first-place vote.
The Case for Victor Wembanyama
The generational prospect became became only the second rookie in NBA history to lead the league in blocks with 254 total and 3.6 per game. Manute Bol did it in 1985-86 as a member of the then-Washington Bullets.
Wemby also put together a block-related statistic that boggles the mind. With 38 for the month of February, he had more rejections than six franchises during that span, three of which ended up making the playoffs: the Chicago Bulls 36, New York Knicks 35, Sacramento Kings 35, LA Clippers 34, Portland Trail Blazers 26, Miami Heat 23.
In an astounding nugget according to Hooper's Delight, the 20-year-old star already has more career blocks than 86.6% of all players in the 77-year history of the NBA.
Victor Wembanyama registered 342 combined steals and blocks, or “stocks,” becoming the first rookie to eclipse 300+ combined steals and blocks in a season since Hall-of-Famer Shaquille O'Neal in 1992-93.
The French marvel also became the first rookie to record a triple-double with blocks since fellow Spurs icon David Robinson in 1989-90. The 27-point, 14 rebounds, 10 blocks, 5 assists, and 2-steal effort on February 12 at the Toronto Raptors also served as the first NBA triple-double with blocks, period, since 2021.
Through the season, no other player NBA player was the subject of as many highlights that featured shot intimidation or blocks as Wembanyama.
What hurt Wemby
While Gobert led the league's best defense, Wembanyama's Spurs ranked 26th in the same category.
Though it's worth noting that San Antonio's defense was near the top when their anchor was in, that it didn't translate to overall results proved a determining factor.
In going 22-60 this past season, fans in the Alamo City were hoping Wemby would join former Spur Alvin Robertson as players on losing teams to win Defensive Player of the Year. The former Spurs guard won the award in 1985-1986 when the franchise went 35-47 and finished as the 8th seed in the West.
Fans in San Antonio hope the current Spur doesn't have to worry about another season in which the team's record holds him back from an award.
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