Victor Wembanyama is inching closer to his return to action. The French wonderkid was listed as probable for the Spurs’ upcoming matchup against the Thunder to decide which team represents the West in the NBA Cup championship game.
Before the upcoming game against the Thunder, Wembanyama spoke to ESPN about his potential return, among other things. Getting set to face the reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Wembanyama decided to give him his flowers, but intentionally ended up discounting Nikola Jokic from the debate over the best NBA player.
“Jokić is the best offensive player … I don’t think he’s the best player. [It’s] between Giannis [Antetokounmpo] and Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander],” said Wembanyama on Jokic when asked about the best NBA player right now. While praising Gilgeous-Alexander and Giannis Antetokounmpo, Wembanyama made a self-assuring assertion.
Victor Wembanyama on who’s the best player in the NBA: “Jokic is the best offensive player… I don’t think he’s the best player. I think it’s between Giannis and Shai. When I come back on the court, I think it’ll be me.” pic.twitter.com/4HZ5hDHoKI
— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) December 13, 2025
“When I come back to the court, it will be me,” he confidently added. The 7’5 Star is set to bounce back from an extended absence of 12 games due to a left calf strain.
He is currently averaging 26.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 3.6 blocks while shooting 50.2% from the field. The Spurs’ big man was in early-season discussions for the MVP award this season and feels he can play even better when he returns.
While I do not blame him for being self-assured, the most controversial part of his statement was that he felt Nikola Jokic is not the best player in the league at the moment. The Serbian superstar currently has the best defensive rating (111.4) on the Nuggets, and yet Wembanyama pointed to his lack of defensive skill.
Meanwhile, both Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (leading the team with the best defense in the league right now) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (a former Defensive Player of the Year) are widely known for having their impact on both ends of the floor.
Just because Jokic is not an elite at perimeter defense and does not usually pick the toughest defensive matchup on a nightly basis, it does not mean his defensive skills are negligible.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Says Spurs Are Better Without Victor Wembanyama
The OKC Thunder also held a press conference before they faced the Spurs for a spot in the NBA Cup championship game. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander addressed the media about Victor Wembanyama and also pointed to the Spurs’ record in his absence.
“Yeah, they’re, like you said, a really good team, whether he’s playing or not, and I think their record is better with him out. Regardless, they’re a really good basketball team, young, athletic, play the right way, talented.”
“It’s going to come down to the things it usually does when you play really good teams, the X’s and O’s, the attention to detail, the 50/50 balls, being physical, being smart out there. It should be a good matchup for us, a good test,” concluded Gilgeous-Alexander
The Spurs are 9-3 without Wembanyama and were 8-4 over the 12 games he played initially in the season. While this sample space is too small to ascertain whether the Spurs are objectively better without Wembanyama, they definitely played with a lot more urgency and pace when they did not have their star player on the floor to bail them out in the paint.
If anything, my sole takeaway from noticing this run from the Spurs is how dangerous a team they are due to their depth of talent on the roster. Stephon Castle, De’Aaron Fox, and Dylan Harper are certainly a trio that the league needs to watch out for.
