SAN ANTONIO — The budding rivalry between Thunder's Chet Holmgren and San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama is must-see television when the pair meet on the court.
However, Holmgren wants to clarify that their rivalry isn't because he has something personal against the Spurs star. It is simply just two players competing to win.
"We're always going to compete, and if people take it as we got beef, those people don't really understand competing," said Holmgren on Paul George's "Podcast P" show.
"Honestly, I don't know the guy. We just play basketball against each other as competitors. Neither of us wants to lose."
The two competed for the 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year Award, but ultimately, Wembanyama ran away with the award despite most of the early part of last season; Holmgren was leading the race.
Wemby finished his rookie season with 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and an NBA-best 3.6 blocked shots per game. Holmgren averaged 16.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.3 blocks per game in his first season and made it to the NBA playoffs.
Team-wise, Holmgren and the Thunder won the regular season series against Wemby's Spurs, two out of three matchups.
Regardless, with both in the same rookie class, both giants in the league, and both set to become stars, it is easy to believe they had personal issues against one another.
It is good to know there isn't any animosity off the court, but on the court, the two are just competitors looking to get his team a win.
Which makes for an outstanding individual matchup to watch for seasons to come.
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