Victor Wembanyama builds MVP case as Spurs clinch division, end playoff drought
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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander swept the regular season and NBA Finals MVP awards last year en route to his first championship.
While Gilgeous-Alexander is having another solid season that has put him back in the MVP discussions for 2025-26, Victor Wembanyama believes there should be a clear favorite for the award.
Wembanyama scored 26 points in Monday’s victory over the Miami Heat, helping the Spurs clinch a division title and end a six-season playoff drought, and later declared he would silence any MVP debate.
“I’ve thought about it,” the 2024 NBA Rookie of the Year said. “I think there’s a debate right now. There should be, although I think he should lead the race. I’m trying to make sure at the end of the season there’s no debate.”
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San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) drives to the basket against the Miami Heat during the second quarter at Kaseya Center on October 15, 2024 in Miami, Florida. (Sam Navarro/Image Images)
Wembanyama enters Wednesday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies averaging 24.3 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots per game.
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While those numbers help bolster Wembanyama’s case as MVP, others can too. In addition to Gilgeous-Alexander, Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, the NBA’s leading scorer, is also considered a great candidate.
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) dribbles the ball during the second quarter against the Sacramento Kings at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, on March 17, 2026. (Sergio Estrada/Imagn Images)
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić, already a three-time MVP, currently has slightly better odds to win the award this year, with Wembanyama in third place, according to data compiled by ESPN. The new NBA rules require a minimum of 65 games played for a player to be eligible for the MVP award.
Wembanyama also presented a three-part case to support his MVP candidacy.
“The first would be that defense is 50% of the game and so far it is undervalued in the MVP race. I think I am the player with the greatest defensive impact in the league,” Wembanyama said. “The second argument would be that we almost swept OKC in the season, and we dominated them three times with their real team… The third argument would be that the offensive impact is not just points.”
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama, center, celebrates with his teammates after making a game-winning shot against the Phoenix Suns in the final seconds of an NBA basketball game in San Antonio, Texas, on March 19, 2026. (Eric Gay/AP Photo)
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson expressed his strong support for Wembanyama’s MVP campaign, noting the impact he sees every day behind the scenes.
“I think it’s close,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “All those guys you named deserve it; a couple of them already have that award. And I’m very biased. I can see one of those guys every night. I can see him on the practice court. I can see what he does in the morning. I can see what he does now, after the game. So, I understand that my opinion and perspective is very different than almost everyone else’s.”
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San Antonio enters Wednesday with 54 wins and will head to the playoffs in no less than the number 2 spot in the Western Conference.
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Chantz Martin is a sports writer for News Digital.