Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs in 2023. Photo by Eric Gay via AP Photo
Victor Wembanyama has had a terrific rookie season with the San Antonio Spurs, even if the team is not in a winning position. While Wembanyama is almost a lock to win the Rookie of the Year award, another conversation is whether or not he will win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green doesn’t think so.
“He’ll have these numbers and he’ll have opportunities to win Defensive Player of the Years. I personally don’t think that is this year. Even if Rudy Gobert wasn’t having the year that he’s having and their team wasn’t having the season that they’re having, I still don’t think you can give that award to somebody who’s on the 24th-best defense in the league.” —Draymond Green
Team Over Individual
On the Draymond Green Show, a show hosted by The Volume, Green indicated that Wembanyama should not win the Defensive Player of the Year Award. He argued that despite Wembanyama having great defense, the team as a whole does not, and that should exclude him from winning the award.
The 20-year-old phenom is definitely in the Defensive Player of the Year conversation. He is leading the NBA in blocks per game, averaging 3.4 this season. He is also 12th in the NBA in steals, at 1.3 per game, 12th in rebounds per game, 10th in defensive win shares, and third in defensive rating.
Wemby vs. The Rest
In contrast, Rudy Gobert, the three-time Defensive Player of the Year Award winner that Green mentioned on his show, is currently sixth in blocks at 2.1 per game, and averages only 0.6 steals per game. Despite this, his odds at the award are the highest due to his team’s outstanding defense.
Another candidate for this year’s Defensive Player of the Year Award, Jarrett Allen (who is currently third in odds) is averaging 1.1 blocks and 0.8 steals per game. Wembanyama’s stats soar above both Gobert and Allen this year on an individual basis.
However, Green’s argument is that team stats should factor into the overall outlook of a player. Taking that into consideration, Wembanyama’s chances are severely hurt, as his Spurs are currently 13-49 and last in the Western Conference. They allow the fifth-most points per game in the NBA, at 120.2.
Still Impressive
In comparison, Gobert’s Minnesota Timberwolves have the best defense in the league this season, allowing 106.5 points per game, almost three points better than the next team. He is, therefore, the favorite to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award this season.
Green also joked that if Wembanyama wins the Defensive Player of the Year Award, then Jayson Tatum should win the MVP. But the fact that Wembanyama is even in the running for the award in his first year indicates great things are to come for the young 7-foot-4 phenom.
