Victor Wembanyama is gaining momentum to win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award, and the top pick recently earned an endorsement from a former winner: Draymond Green.
Wembanyama is averaging 21.2 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 3.5 blocks and 1.3 steals in 67 games with the San Antonio Spurs. He has the most 30-point games (9) by a rookie since Trae Young in the 2018-19 season and is the only rookie to register a triple-double (2) this season.
The 7-footer leads the league in blocks and is 16th in steals. He ranks third in defensive box plus-minus (plus-3.2), sixth in defensive win shares (4.0) and eighth in rebounds. He also has the most games with at least five blocks (22); the next highest player has nine (Brook Lopez).
Green, who won the award in 2017, said last month on his podcast that he didn’t believe Wembanyama should win because the Spurs were ranked 26th in defense. He has since reversed course and believes Wembanyama should win it this year.
I know I said on here a little while back that Wemby shouldn’t be the Defensive Player of the Year and I lied: Wemby should be the Defensive Player of the Year because he is that amazing defensively. The way he impacts the game on the defensive end — whether it is off the ball (or) on the ball — is a problem. When you start driving to the hole and guys may have a layup and they just turn out and go the other way? That’s a problem. … I don’t know what lab he was created in, but I need to go create me a son in that lab because dude is unbelievable.
According to the BetMGM Sportsbook, Wembanyama is second in odds (plus-750) to win Defensive Player of the Year, trailing only Minnesota center Rudy Gobert (minus-2500). Gobert is a three-time winner and last took home the honors in 2021.
In addition to Green, Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving recently signed off on Wembanyama winning the award, given his body of work on the defensive end of the court this season. Irving believes Wembanyama has the tools to be a consistent contender each year.
"I lied… Wemby should be the Defensive Player of the Year" – @Money23Green 🤷‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/7uPsIoMKIv
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) April 3, 2024
The late push by Wembanyama for the award will likely fall short, but the 20-year-old is looking forward to competing against Gobert for it in the future given their connection. He knows his time is coming to win the award.
“I know that Rudy has a very good chance of winning it this year, and it would be deserved,” Wembanyama said on March 14, via Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News. “Let him win it now because after that, it’s no longer his turn.”
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=650262956]