Victor Wembanyama might already be the most dominant defender the NBA has ever seen, but not everyone thinks that his rate is sustainable, at least not in the stat sheet.
Is Victor Wembanyama already the most talented defender the NBA has ever seen? His career average of 3.5 blocks per game, coupled with his do-all abilities and downright intimidation, certainly gives him a strong case.
He seems poised to win his first (of many) career Defensive Player of the Year awards this season, provided he can finish out his campaign healthy. However, his blocks per game have actually taken a dip this season.
That's not to say his dominance has disappeared. The Spurs allow the seventh-fewest points in the paint this season, and it's entirely thanks to opponents being scared to even take those shots. Many times this season, we've seen would-be drivers dribble to the paint, take one look at Wemby, and simply give up, turning around entirely.
That kind of impact is hard to measure, but it might affect his ability to break an all-time record.
Joel Embiid Doubts Wemby's All-Time Ranking
Hakeem Olajuwon is the NBA blocks leader, with 3830 career rejections. He averaged 3.1 blocks per game over his 18-year career and posted 4.6 during the 1990 season.
If Wembanyama stays healthy, he won't have to even play 18 NBA seasons to break that record. However, Joel Embiid thinks Wembanyama's blocking numbers are about to take a massive dip, and it won't be his fault.
“Someone told me that when he was a rookie, I think it was Embiid, that he won’t break the all-time record for blocks because people will be too scared to shoot in front of him," Nicolas Batum revealed. "That might be true. Yes, he’s gonna block shots for the next few years, but at some point people are going to get so scared to shoot in front of him that he might average just one block a game because these people are too scared.”
Batum and Wembanyama are teammates on the French National Team, and Batum has long been one of his biggest hypemen. However, Wembvanyama's mere presence down low is enough to deter would-be scorers, and he's already seeing that impact in his individual statistics.
Should that impact his future Defensive Player of the Year cases? No, but it might. Voter fatigue is very real, especially in the NBA, and decreased counting stats might affect his hardware count.