San Antonio Spurs centre Victor Wembanyama has been named the NBA’s defensive player of the year.
The 7ft 4in France international is the first unanimous winner in the award’s 43-year history having secured all 100 of the first-place votes.
At 22, he is the youngest player to win the award and the second to win it within their first three seasons, after Spurs legend David Robinson (1991-92).
Wembanyama was the first overall draft pick in 2023 and has led the league in blocks (3.1 per game) for the third straight season.
The two-time All-Star also averaged career highs in points (25.0) and rebounds (11.5), and claimed a steal per game.
“I’m super, super happy to win this award and actually super proud to be the first ever unanimous [winner],” he told NBC.
Oklahoma City Thunder’s Chet Holmgren finished second with 239 points (76 second-place votes), while Ausar Thompson of the Detroit Pistons was third with 60 points (nine second-place votes).
Wembanyama, who is also a Most Valuable Player contender, helped San Antonio post the second-best record in the regular season (62-20) and their defence was ranked third overall.
German NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki told AFP: “I’ve never seen anything like it.
“His defence is so good that he changes the game just by being on the court and taking away some of the lay-ups and twos that other teams would usually take.”
Cavs take charge against Raptors
Wembanyama starred during his play-off debut on Sunday and the first round of the post-season continued on Monday, with the Cleveland Cavaliers taking charge against the Toronto Raptors.
Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points for Cleveland while James Harden added 28 as the Cavs claimed a 115-105 home win to go 2-0 up in the seven-game series.
“They’re one of the greatest (back-courts),” said team-mate Evan Mobley. “It’s hard to stop them because of their offensive prowess. They can make any shot.”
Toronto’s shooting guard RJ Barrett added: “They’re a problem and we’ve got to figure out how to fix that.”
Anthony Edwards claimed 30 points and 10 rebounds as the Minnesota Timberwolves fought back from 19 points down to win 119-114 at the Denver Nuggets and level their series at 1-1.
The Atlanta Hawks also claimed a comeback win on the road, beating the New York Knicks 107-106 to make it 1-1, with CJ McCollum scoring a game-high 32 points.
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