SAN ANTONIO – The meteoric rise of San Antonio Spurs forward/center Victor Wembanyama continues Saturday as he officially received the 2024 NBA Rookie of the Year award.
Wembanyama received the award at the Scobee Education Center & Planetarium. You can watch KSAT’s coverage of the award ceremony and news conference in the video player above.
The NBA’s Rookie of the Year award is the Wilt Chamberlain Trophy, named after the 7-foot-1 marvel who bulldozed his way to a 37.6-point and 27.0-rebound season in his first year with the Philadelphia Warriors in 1959-60. Chamberlain also won the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award during his rookie campaign.
Wembanyama joins an elite class with five other players over the last 40 years who were voted unanimously as the league’s top rookie. The other five rookies became perennial NBA All-Stars: Blake Griffin, Damian Lillard, Karl-Anthony Towns, Ralph Sampson and, of course, David Robinson.
Wembanyama, who is 7-foot-4, averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 3.6 blocks per game in his rookie season.
Wembanyama also became the first player in NBA history to be selected as one of three finalists for both the league’s Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season.
The rookie finished second in the Defensive Player of the Year voting to Minnesota Timberwolves center and fellow French native Rudy Gobert, who won a record-tying fourth DPOY award.
More Victor Wembanyama Rookie of the Year coverage on KSAT: