One hundred voters. One hundred first-place votes. Not a single dissenting voice.

Victor Wembanyama didn’t just win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award on Monday — he consumed it entirely. In the 43-year history of the award, no player had ever earned every available first-place vote. The closest anyone came was Ben Wallace, who managed 116 of 120 in 2002. Wembanyama took all 100.

He is, by some margin, the youngest to hold the trophy: 22 years and 98 days old. Every previous winner was at least 23.

The numbers border on the absurd. Wembanyama led the league in blocks for a third consecutive season, swatting 197 shots — 44 more than second-place Jay Huff of Indiana, a gap wider than the spread between second and ninth place. Opponents simply stopped testing him. According to CBS Sports, only Oklahoma City’s defense forced opponents into fewer shots within six feet of the rim. San Antonio allowed just 103.6 points per 100 possessions with Wembanyama on the floor, a full-season mark no team has bettered since 2020.

He did all of this while averaging career highs in points (25.0) and rebounds (11.5). Spurs forward Keldon Johnson’s assessment was blunt: “Best player in the world.”

Wembanyama became only the second player since 1992 to win DPOY within his first three seasons, joining Spurs legend David Robinson. The franchise now boasts a league-high four different winners — Alvin Robertson, Robinson, Kawhi Leonard, and now the Frenchman who may eclipse them all. CBS Sports suggested that, assuming health, Wembanyama claiming a record-setting fifth DPOY feels “downright inevitable.” Hard to argue.

The Spurs went 62-20 and opened the playoffs with Wembanyama dropping a franchise-record 35 points in his postseason debut. They have their centerpiece. The league has a problem that is only getting bigger.

Sources