SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama ran away with the 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year Award, but for most of the early part of last season, Thunder's Chet Holmgren was leading the race.
But now that the dust has settled and Holmgren would finish as the runner-up for the award, what does he think about the race with him and Wemby?
Speaking with the "Road Trippin'" show, the OKC big man says it ultimately came down to different situations between him and the Spurs center.
"Our situations were different. Like polar opposites," he said. "You can come up with 50 pros and cons for each of us on things outside of statistics. Just completely random things like who is on our team, what we are playing for how much attention is placed on us. You can come up with a million things for each of us to try to skew decisions."
"But at the end of the day, what is the criteria? It's all in the eye of the beholder," he added.
Holmgren pointed out that Wemby winning the award was not unfair. In fact, he agreed with the voter's decision and added that it just came down to what they saw between him and the French big man.
However, Holmgren said he played more than 82 games last season than Wembanyama played (71).
Once he moved to the center position, Wemby undoubtedly won the award once the regular season closed.
He finished 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 Holmgren is correct: His team was different than Wemby's.
The Thunder already had an established team with an MVP candidate (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander) and a fleshed-out roster. San Antonio is still rebuilding and looking to create a team to surround Wemby moving forward.
"I've just witnessed so much greatness. And I want to be a part of it," Wembanyama said when he won the award. "More and more, I'm seeing that I'm already able to compete with those guys. I'm not near, but I'm on the right path. I know it. And I'm going to get there one day soon."
RELATED: Spurs present Victor Wembanyama with Rookie of the Year trophy at San Antonio College Planetarium
He took home three straight Rookie of the Month Awards to close the season and shattered records in his rookie campaign.
Wembanyama's NBA career is just beginning, and if his rookie season is any indication, his award shelf will likely become an award warehouse.
"These are going to be on my way," he said. "It's another milestone, and these things are important to me."
The Holmgren-Wembanyama battles were must-watch games last season and will surely continue to be great on-the-court battles for years to come.
What do you think, Spurs fans? Let us know on X at @KENS5 and @JeffGSpursKENS5.