Wemby led the Spurs to 62 win this season as well as their first playoff berth in seven years.
SAN ANTONIO — The MVP trophy may reside in San Antonio once again after Victor Wembanyama was named a finalist for the award about an hour before his first ever playoff game.
Earlier in the night, Wemby was named a finalist for the Defensive Player of the Year award.
During halftime of Game 1 of the Pistons-Magic series, he was also announced as a finalist for the biggest individual accolade a player can get: MVP.
Wemby will be battling two former MVPs for the award: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Thunder (last year’s MVP) and Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets.
Wembanyama put up averages of 25 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and a league-leading 3.1 blocks a game. He also led the Spurs to 62 wins and their first playoff berth in seven years.
His coach Mitch Johnson was also announced as a candidate for Coach of the Year. He will go against JB Bickerstaff of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Joe Mazzulla of the Boston Celtics.
This means that the Spurs have the opportunity to win four total awards this season: Wemby for MVP and DPOY, Keldon Johnson for Sixth Man of the Year and Mitch Johnson for Coach of the Year.