Victory Wembanyama is taking on the NBA world by storm. The 2025–26 San Antonio Spurs season has been a historic “leap” year, transforming from a rebuilding squad into a legitimate Western Conference powerhouse.
In only his third year in the league, Wembanyama has elevated his game to an MVP-caliber level this year, leading the Spurs to a 54-18 record. Averaging 24.3 points, 11.2 rebounds, and 3.0 blocks per game, the 22-year-old phenom has become one of the faces of the league.
In last night’s game, Wemby put up a 26-point, 15-rebound, 5-block performance in a blowout win over the Miami Heat.
Following the game, responding to The Athletic’s Jared Weiss’s question about whether he should be the MVP, Wembanyama didn’t hesitate to state his case for the crown.
Victor Wembanyama makes a strong case for why he should be the MVP
“My first one would be that defense is 50% of the game and that it is undervalued so far in the MVP race. I believe I’m the most impactful player defensively in the league. Second argument would be that we… pic.twitter.com/egEdL1KlBx
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 24, 2026
“My first one would be that defense is 50 percent of the game. And that is undervalued, so far, in the MVP race,” Wembanyama said. “I believe I’m the most impactful player defensively in the league. The second argument would be that we almost swept OKC in the season, and we dominated them three times with their real team and four times with the, you know, more rotation players. My third argument would be that offense impact is not just points.”
Wembanyama also predicted that defensive plays are going to have more of an impact during MVP races.
“It’s going to happen (over) time,” Wembanyama said. “If there were more players like Giannis (Antetokounmpo) in the past years, maybe defense would have been more recognized. I don’t know.”
When it comes to Fan Duel’s current odds, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander remains the heavy betting favorite to win his second consecutive MVP award, with odds as short as -1000 at several major sportsbooks. While the race appeared to be a tight three-man battle earlier in March, Luka Dončić (+1200) and Wembanyama (+2500) have seen their odds drift as SGA pulls away.
