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Wembanyama, Gobert Top NBA All-Defensive First Team

5/23/2026

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Summary

Wembanyama Earns All-Defensive

The NBA announced its All-Defensive teams on Friday, naming Victor Wembanyama a first-team pick.
Wembanyama led the league with 3.1 blocks per game, a three-year high.
First-team also included Chet Holmgren, Ausar Thompson, Rudy Gobert and Derrick White.
Holmgren averaged 1.9 blocks per game and finished second in Defensive Player of Year voting.
Gobert earned his eighth first-team nod, one short of a ten-time record, and received 151 voting points.

Summary

Wembanyama Dominates Defense

Victor Wembanyama posted 25 points per game despite missing most of the 2023-24 season with deep-vein thrombosis.
He recorded 3.08 blocks per game, becoming the third player to lead the league in blocks three seasons.
On the floor, Wembanyama improved the Spurs’ defense by 12.3 points per 100 possessions.
His unanimous All-Defensive selection made him the seventh Spur with honors, a milestone not reached since Duncan and Bowen in 2007-08.

Summary

Adebayo Wins Justice

A panel of 100 voters set the 2025-26 Kia NBA All-Defensive Team, with Ernst & Young LLP tabulating the ballot for transparency.
Bam Adebayo won the NBA’s Social Justice Champion Award, beating finalists Harrison Barnes, Jaylen Brown, Tobias Harris and Larry Nance Jr.
He will receive the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar trophy, a $100,000 NBA donation to a nonprofit of his choice, with announcement set for the 2026 NBA Playoffs Conference Finals.

History

Historical Context

In 1993 Leslie Alexander bought the Rockets, and by 1994-95 Hakeem Olajuwon captured both MVP and Defensive Player of the Year while guiding Houston to a franchise-record 58 wins and becoming the NBA’s all-time block leader. The following 1995-96 campaign posted 48 wins, cementing a rim-protection identity that still influences defensive strategy today.

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Wembanyama Earns All-Defensive

The NBA announced its All-Defensive teams on Friday, naming Victor Wembanyama a first-team pick.
Wembanyama led the league with 3.1 blocks per game, a three-year high.
First-team also included Chet Holmgren, Ausar Thompson, Rudy Gobert and Derrick White.
Holmgren averaged 1.9 blocks per game and finished second in Defensive Player of Year voting.
Gobert earned his eighth first-team nod, one short of a ten-time record, and received 151 voting points.

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