Wembanyama Gives Three Reasons He Should Be MVP

Victor Wembanyama has already told the world that he wants to win MVP, and now he's told us his three most persuasive arguments for deserving to be called the league's most valuable player.

"I think right now, it is still reasonable that there is a debate," he said after another dominant two-way performance in a win over the Heat. "I want to make sure, my goal is to make sure there's no debate anymore at the end of the season."

After Wembanyama tallied 26 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 blocks in a blowout win in Miami, Jared Weiss of the Athletic and New York Times asked him to make the case in his own words, picking three issues to campaign on. Wemby thought about it for a few moments, then laid out his best case.

Asked Wemby to provide his 3 campaign bullet points for why he should be MVP https://t.co/HjRppaPLfY pic.twitter.com/FHXrFMjAi3
— Jared Weiss (@JaredWeissNBA) March 24, 2026

1. "Defense is 50% of the Game"

"My first one would be that defense is 50% of the game, and that is undervalued so far in the MVP race, because I believe I'm the most impactful player, defensively, in the league," Wembanyama said.

Wembanyama is absolutely the league's best and most impactful defender this season, and a lock for Defensive Player of the Year honors so long as he meets the 65-game minimum. His impact was on full display in the win over the Heat. His five blocks were all impressive, but the one where he chased Norm Powell under the basket and then reached around the rim to block it defies all conventional basketball knowledge.

The impact is so much more than just "tall man blocks shots," though. In addition to stifling Bam Adebayo, many members of the Miami roster drove into the paint only to immediately turn around and say, "You know what? I'm good." These 'nopes' fundamentally change the flow and function of the other team's offense. His deterrence is a game changing weapon.

Per Cleaning the Glass, the Spurs are 12.9 points per 100 possessions better defensively when Wembanyama is on the court versus off. They allow 105 points per 100 possessions when he's out there, which is the 99th percentile. Opposing offenses are held below 50% on effective field goal percentage, a drop off of over five percentage points which puts him in the 97th percentile there.

Essentially the Spurs are a below average defense when he sits, and they're better than the league's best defense when he's on the floor.

A recent episode of Thinking Basketball dug deep into the numbers and found that Wembanyama's defensive impact on his team is essentially right up there with how Steph Curry's offense impacted the Warriors when he was the unanimous MVP.

2. Spurs Dominated the Thunder

"Second argument would be that we almost swept OKC in the season, and we dominated them three times with their real team and the fourth time more rotation players," Wembanyama said.

The Spurs' season would be impressive enough if they won 54 games and got a top-six playoff seed. In addition to doing all of that with 10 games to go, San Antonio defeated the defending champions four times and can challenge them for the league's best record.

As Wembanyama acknowledged, the Thunder weren't at their best the final time these teams played. However, the NBA Cup Semifinal and Christmas Day game each had a little extra juice in terms of pressure and stakes, which counts for something.

The Spurs won the Cup semifinal by two with 22 points in 21 minutes off the bench for Wemby in his return from injury. They won by 20 on December 23 in San Antonio, then by 15 on Christmas Day in Oklahoma City.

The Spurs are currently 3 games back of the Thunder, who have a more difficult schedule to close the season. If San Antonio can get close or even snatch the top seed from OKC, any advantage Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has as the best player on the best team would be greatly diminished.

3. "Offensive Impact is Not Just Points"

"My third argument would be that (my) offensive impact is not just points," Wembanyama said in closing.

Wembanyama is averaging 24.3 points and 3 assists per game, which is very good for a player his size and age but puts him at a disadvantage when compared to guys like SGA, Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic who all create more points for their teams directly through scoring and assisting.

The thing that Wemby hits at in his third point, though, is that his impact on the game offensively can't adequately be measured in the box score. His gravity bends the defense every moment he is on the floor, and that creates driving lanes for the Spurs' talented trio of guards and open shots for everyone.

Really enjoying the growth from Stephon Castle when it comes to reading the defense *and* passing. Another slip from Victor Wembanyama, Castle sees the help and gets it right to Vassell in the corner. pic.twitter.com/6paid99U50
— Steve Jones (@stevejones20) March 23, 2026

The Spurs have the fourth-best offense in the NBA all season, and since the start of February their 121.8 points per 100 possessions is the best mark in the league. The big man is a big part of that.

Per Cleaning the Glass, the Spurs score 3.6 points per possession more when he's on the court versus off. San Antonio's effective field goal percentage is 58.1% when he's out there, a jump of 4.6 percentage points that puts him in the 97th percentile there. The Spurs score 121.5 points per 100 possessions when he's on the floor, which is better than the NBA's best offense.

In total, the Spurs are 16.5 points per 100 possessions better with Wembanyama on the floor. At that rate he'd be expected to add 31 wins to his team's total, per Cleaning the Glass.

For reference, the Thunder are 10.4 points per 100 possessions better offensively with SGA on the floor and 1.4 points per 100 possessions worse defensively, giving him an on/off net of +9 and adding 14 expected wins.

Wembanyama's defense is astounding, his offensive impact is under the radar, and behind his dominance the Spurs have beaten the reigning champions four times and have a chance to overtake them in the standings.

If that sounds pretty valuable, that's because it is. But is he the Most Valuable Player? The debate will likely continue regardless of how the season ends for him. But Wembanyama wants it, and he knows his worth no matter what happens.