Victor Wembanyama Wins PBWA's Magic Johnson Award For 2025-26 Season

Victor Wembanyama led the NBA in blocked photographs within the 2025-26 season.

Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs has gained the 2025-26 Magic Johnson Award, which honors the NBA participant who finest combines excellence on the courtroom with cooperation and beauty in coping with the media and followers, the Professional Basketball Writers Association introduced right now.

Wembanyama averaged 25 factors, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and a league-leading 3.1 blocks per sport this season and was named an All-Star for the second time. Off the courtroom, Wembanyama constantly fostered an environment of mutual respect and openness with reporters who cowl the NBA.

“Victor Wembanyama thoroughly embodies the spirit of this award – as a superstar who is just as thoughtful and engaging off the court as he is dominant on the court,” mentioned PBWA president Howard Beck. “He is giving of himself, amiable and affected person with reporters, and keen to debate nearly any topic – from the MVP race to social justice to the Northern Lights. As certainly one of our members put it, Victor is ‘a deep thinker who understands the facility of his phrases.’ ”

Beck added: “Even with the immense highlight and expectations he faces each day, Victor constantly approaches his interviews with enthusiasm and a humorousness. The day earlier than he was drafted in 2023, Victor mentioned his purpose was to be one of the best in ‘all dimensions of the job,’ together with ‘one of the best on the media, the press convention stuff.’ As he has on the courtroom, he has greater than lived as much as his promise.”

Wembanyama is the primary Spur to win the award and, at age 22, the youngest honoree since Kevin Durant (additionally 22) in 2011.

Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers completed second within the balloting, for the second straight yr. The different finalists, based mostly on nominations from PBWA members, had been Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors, Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks. A vote of the total PBWA membership decided the winner.

The award, created in 2001, is known as in honor of Earvin “Magic” Johnson, the previous Los Angeles Lakers star, who was constantly participating, considerate and gracious with the media all through his Hall of Fame profession.

The PBWA yearly honors an NBA PR workers (Brian McIntyre Award), coach (Rudy Tomjanovich Award) and star participant (Magic Johnson Award) who go above and past to work with the media and assist inform followers. Under the PBWA’s present guidelines, adopted in 2020, no workforce or particular person can win in consecutive years.

The PBWA consists of greater than 200 writers and editors who repeatedly cowl the NBA and WNBA for newspapers, magazines and on-line information retailers.

Magic Johnson Award winners