{"id":714881,"date":"2026-04-21T00:00:18","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T00:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/714881\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T00:00:18","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T00:00:18","slug":"spurs-victor-wembanyama-named-2025-26-kia-nba-defensive-player-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/714881\/","title":{"rendered":"Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama named 2025-26 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\u2022\u00a02025-26 NBA Awards: Complete coverage<\/a>
\u2022\u00a0Kia DPOY Award: All-Time Winners<\/a><\/p>\n

(AP) \u2014 There had never been a unanimous NBA Defensive Player of the Year. Until now.<\/p>\n

Victor Wembanyama \u2014 as expected \u2014 was announced Monday night as the league\u2019s top defensive player. The San Antonio center was second in the voting for DPOY as a rookie, was the favorite last season until a medical condition ended his season prematurely, then left no doubt this year.<\/p>\n

At 22, he\u2019s the youngest winner of the award.<\/p>\n

San Antonio Spurs forward-center Victor Wembanyama has been named the 2025-26 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year, earning the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy. pic.twitter.com\/96Uea03lB7<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 20, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Oklahoma City\u2019s Chet Holmgren and Detroit\u2019s Ausar Thompson were the other finalists, after both helped their teams secure No. 1 seeds for the playoffs. But this was never in doubt, not after the 7-foot-4 \u2014 or maybe taller \u2014 Wembanyama led the NBA in blocked shots for a third consecutive season and generally terrorized opponents any time they wanted to score.<\/p>\n

\u201cBest player in the world,\u201d Spurs forward Keldon Johnson said.<\/p>\n

The NBA will continue its award announcements<\/a> Tuesday when the Clutch Player of the Year \u2014 either Minnesota\u2019s Anthony Edwards, Oklahoma City\u2019s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Denver\u2019s Jamal Murray \u2014 is revealed. Wembanyama is also a finalist for MVP, with the winner of that trophy not set to be revealed until next week at the earliest.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Victor Wembanyama joined the NBC\/Peacock pregame show to discus winning the 2025-26 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year award.<\/p>\n

First, the league got this announcement out of the way. And Wembanyama\u2019s win was accompanied by a slew of historical significance.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Every other winner of the award had been at least 23. Wembanyama doesn\u2019t turn 23 until next January.<\/p>\n

\u2022 The Spurs became the first franchise with four players to win DPOY, which was first handed out in the 1982-83 season. The others? Alvin Robertson in 1986, David Robinson in 1992 and Kawhi Leonard in 2015 and 2016.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Wembanyama joins Robinson and Michael Jordan as the only players to win both Rookie of the Year and DPOY.<\/p>\n

The biggest accomplishment may be this: Wemby got everybody to agree.<\/p>\n

Golden State\u2019s Stephen Curry was the unanimous MVP in 2016 and in the 10 seasons that have followed, there have been only two instances of a player collecting 100% of the first-place votes for an award.<\/p>\n

Those were Wembanyama for Rookie of the Year in 2024, and now this.<\/p>\n

Victor Wembanyama is the first unanimous Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year since the award\u2019s inception in 1982-83.<\/p>\n

The winner was selected by a global media panel of 100 voters.<\/p>\n

Complete voting results \u2b07\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/wIUDEDWJtm<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 20, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

No player in at least the last 50 seasons \u2014 and maybe ever, since it\u2019s hard to say with certainty because some full voting results for awards handed out generations ago are not known publicly \u2014 has won two awards unanimously.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the 10th known unanimous pick in any NBA awards vote for MVP, Rookie of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, Most Improved Player, DPOY or Coach of the Year. And some of biggest names like LeBron James and Michael Jordan never won a major award by unanimous decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like he is one of the hardest workers that I\u2019ve ever been around,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cHe takes his craft very seriously. I feel like this is just a small token of what\u2019s to come for Victor. He\u2019s a special player now. He\u2019s a special player on the court and even more special person off the court as well. This is just a small token, small flowers that\u2019s given to him for Defensive Player of the Year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Holmgren and Thompson both got votes for the first time; a panel of reporters and broadcasters who cover the league were asked to pick their top three in the category, with ballots due last week before the playoffs started.<\/p>\n

Wembanyama is an MVP finalist (along with Oklahoma City\u2019s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning MVP, and three-time winner Nikola Jokic of Denver), which almost certainly means he\u2019ll be an All-NBA first-team selection. And the DPOY win means he\u2019ll also be on the All-Defensive team, so Wembanyama is assured of no fewer than four trophies from this year\u2019s award season.<\/p>\n