‘Indictment on the game’ – Victor Wembanyama’s MVP plea prompts brutal Draymond Green truths

Victor Wembanyama is adamant that he should be the NBA’s MVP this year.

But Golden State Warriors stalwart Draymond Green has been very vocal – as he always is – in response to the San Antonio Spurs superstar’s public declaration.

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After the Spurs inflicted a 136-111 defeat on the Miami Heat on Monday night, Wembanyama outlined his three main reasons as to why he felt he should be named the league MVP this year over leading front-runners Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Doncic.

“I think right now it is still reasonable that there is a debate,” Wembanyama told reporters. “But my goal is to make sure there’s no debate anymore at the end of the season.

“Three arguments. My first one would be that defense is 50 percent of the game and that is undervalued so far in your race, because I believe I’m the most impactful player defensively in the league.

“Second argument would be that we almost swept OKC in the season and we dominated them three times with their real team and four times with more rotation players.

“And my third argument would be that offense impact is not just points.”

By defensive win shares and defensive rating, the Frenchman ranks first this season, while Gilgeous-Alexander ranks inside the top-10 in both marks.

On the season, Wembanyama has averaged 24.2 points from 50.5 percent shooting from the field, three assists, 11.2 rebounds and a league-leading 3.1 blocks, and has firmly established himself as one of the league’s best players despite still being just 22-years-old.

Green issues blunt reality check to Wemby

After the Warriors’ 109-106 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night, 14-year NBA veteran Green issued a blunt reality check to the Spurs star.

Depsite stating that he both “absolutely loved” and “hated” Wembanyama’s self-promotion for the MVP crown, the four-time NBA champion was not fond of the response to it.

“Wemby said, ‘Defense is 50% of the game,’ and it was like, oh, no one realized that?” Green said. “No one realized that 50% of the game we play is on that end of the floor?”

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“Everybody says he has a great point,” the outspoken veteran said of Wembanyama’s first claim. “Hello? You think? I hated that he had to do that for it to be said. All of a sudden, you turn on the TV and everybody is like, ‘Actually, maybe Wemby is the MVP.'”

Green, the 2017 Defensive Player of the Year, further went on state: “It’s an indictment on the game of basketball.

“Everybody want to crush Luka Doncic when Luka doesn’t live up to the standard of defense. But we got this guy defending entire teams and nobody took it into account until he said defense is 50% of the game.

“I want to give him so much credit for such a profound statement, but was it really that profound? But it’s so true. Yet it took for him to say that.”

Granted, the Warriors forward’s criticisms were mainly aimed toward how national media and fans respond after certain claims are made by players, such as when he catapulted himself into the 2024-25 DPOY conversation via his own self-promotion.

He wound up finishing in third place behind Evan Mobley and Dyson Daniels.

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“With these awards, if you don’t talk, people can’t see,” the 36-year-old added. “With the game of basketball, let’s not act like everyone can just open their eyes and know what’s going on. …

“Until Evan Mobley finally said something last year, no one was going to give him Defensive Player of the Year. If you don’t come out and speak for yourself, it don’t work.

“I tip my cap to Wemby for being willing to sit up there on that platform and say, ‘This is why. ‘

“Not hide from the question. Not just assume they’ll figure it out. No, they won’t. I’m happy he’s smart enough to know they won’t figure it out. You don’t help them see it, damn it they can’t see.”

Having played in 58 of San Antonio’s 73 contests thus far, Wembanyama must play in six of the Spurs’ remaining nine contests in order to qualify for the NBA’s end-of-season awards, where he is currently the runaway favorite to earn his first career DPOY award.

The MVP race, though, is far more complicated.

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