The NBA made it official Monday. Victor Wembanyama won the 2025-26 Defensive Player of the Year award, becoming the first unanimous selection in the history of the honor.

The San Antonio Spurs center didn’t just beat out the competition, he left no room for debate.

MORE: Karl Anthony Towns has hilarious postgame reaction to ‘Game of Thrones’ star

This was supposed to happen a year ago. Wembanyama looked like a lock for the award in 2024-25 before a blood clot ended his season after 46 games. The injury wiped out what seemed like an inevitable win and left the race wide open.

This season, nothing got in the way. No setbacks, no controversies, no second-guessing. Wembanyama dominated on the defensive end all year. He swallowed up shots at the rim, erased driving lanes, and turned entire offensive schemes sideways just by stepping on the floor.

Opposing teams spent timeouts trying to figure out how to work around him. Most of them failed. The 7-foot-4 center put up 25.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.1 assists over 64 games.

He beat out Oklahoma City Thunder center Chet Holmgren for the award, who finished second in voting. Wembanyama now owns two straight top-two finishes in Defensive Player of the Year balloting after placing runner-up to Rudy Gobert during his 2023-24 Rookie of the Year campaign.

The award also came with another piece of history. Wembanyama became the youngest player ever to win Defensive Player of the Year, breaking a record that stood for decades.

His offense draws plenty of attention. Wembanyama can handle the ball in transition, knock down threes, post up smaller defenders, and score from the mid-range with ease.

But it’s his defense that separates him from everyone else in the league. After watching his chance slip away last season, Wembanyama finally collected the hardware that felt overdue.