San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama secured a unanimous selection for the NBA’s All-Rookie team this season, a result announced by the league on Monday.
Wembanyama’s dominance extended as he garnered a unanimous vote for Rookie of the Year, a decision reached by a panel of 99 voters who also participated in selecting the league’s awards this season.
Joining Wembanyama on the first team were Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren, Charlotte’s Brandon Miller, Miami’s Jaime Jaquez Jr., and Golden State’s Brandin Podziemski.
Holmgren, who finished as the runner-up in the Rookie of the Year race, also achieved a unanimous first-team selection.
Miller, Jaquez, and Podziemski, who ranked third, fourth, and fifth respectively in the Rookie of the Year balloting, maintained their positions in the All-Rookie team voting. Jaquez notably joined Wembanyama and Holmgren as the only players to appear on all 99 ballots.
Dallas’ Dereck Lively II earned a spot on the second-team All-Rookie, alongside Houston’s Amen Thompson, Utah’s Keyonte George, Oklahoma City’s Cason Wallace, and Memphis’ GG Jackson II. Jackson secured the final spot by a single vote over Golden State’s Trayce Jackson-Davis.
The league will unveil the All-Defensive team selections on Tuesday, followed by the All-NBA team on Wednesday. Wembanyama, a standout defensive player who ranked second in the Defensive Player of the Year race, is anticipated to earn a spot on the first-team All-Defense and likely received consideration for All-NBA honors as well.
Should Wembanyama make either the All-Defense or All-NBA team, or both, he would join an elite group as the first rookie since San Antonio’s Tim Duncan in 1998 and David Robinson in 1990 to achieve such recognition.
Notably, only five rookies in NBA history have earned All-Defensive team honors, including Duncan, Robinson, Washington’s Manute Bol (1986), Houston’s Hakeem Olajuwon (1985), and Milwaukee’s Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1970).
Furthermore, Wembanyama’s potential inclusion in the All-NBA team would mark him as the 22nd rookie in NBA history to achieve this feat. Among these, only four have done so in the last 45 seasons: Duncan, Robinson, Chicago’s Michael Jordan (1985), and Boston’s Larry Bird (1980).
