Wembanyama becomes youngest unanimous NBA Defensive Player of the Year

Victor Wembanyama turned the NBA’s defensive race into a referendum on how the game is protected now. At 22, the San Antonio Spurs star became the youngest Defensive Player of the Year in league history and the first unanimous winner since the award began in 1982-83, a clean sweep from a global media panel of 100 voters that left little doubt about where the league’s defensive standard now sits.

The vote reflected more than blocked shots, even though Wembanyama led the league in that category for a third consecutive season. His size, reach, mobility and timing made every trip to the rim feel compromised, forcing opponents to alter drives, rush passes and settle for tougher shots. In a league increasingly defined by spacing and shot quality, Wembanyama has become a rare defender who changes the geometry of an offense before the ball even reaches the paint. He was also still in the MVP conversation when the award was announced, an unusual place for a player whose biggest edge came on the other end.

San Antonio gained more than a trophy from the announcement. The Spurs became the first franchise with four different Defensive Player of the Year winners, joining Alvin Robertson, David Robinson and Kawhi Leonard. Wembanyama also joined Robinson and Michael Jordan as the only players to win both Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, a short list that captures how quickly he has entered the league’s historical frame.

The award carried added meaning because Wembanyama’s season had already been interrupted by a serious medical setback. In February 2025, the NBA said he was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder and missed the rest of the 2024-25 season. Even after that stoppage, he remained the favorite for the award, and the unanimous vote confirmed that his defensive impact had already separated him from the field.

The finalists, Chet Holmgren of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Ausar Thompson of the Detroit Pistons, underscored the company Wembanyama was keeping. Inside the Spurs locker room, the reaction was as direct as the vote was decisive. Keldon Johnson called him “Best player in the world.” For a franchise still building around him, the message was even bigger: San Antonio now has a young defender who can anchor a team and redefine what elite defense looks like in the modern NBA.