Victor Wembanyama is a unanimous selection as the NBA's defensive player of the year

There had never been a unanimous NBA Defensive Player of the Year. Until now.

Victor Wembanyama — as expected — was announced Monday as the league's top defensive player. The San Antonio center was second in the voting for DPOY as a rookie, was the favorite last season until a medical condition ended his season prematurely, then left no doubt this year.

At 22, he's the youngest winner of the award.

“The real struggle might have been getting to 65 games,” Wembanyama said — referring to the number he needed for award eligibility — on NBC Sports Network. “But I’m super, super happy to win this award and actually super proud to be the first-ever unanimous.”

Oklahoma City's Chet Holmgren was second and Detroit's Ausar Thompson was third after both helped their teams secure No. 1 seeds for the playoffs. But this was never in doubt, not after the 7-foot-4 — or maybe taller — Wembanyama led the NBA in blocked shots for a third consecutive season and generally terrorized opponents any time they wanted to score.

“Best player in the world,” Spurs forward Keldon Johnson said.

The NBA will continue its award announcements Tuesday when the Clutch Player of the Year — either Minnesota's Anthony Edwards, Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Denver's Jamal Murray — is revealed. Wembanyama is also a finalist for MVP, with the winner of that trophy not set to be revealed until next week at the earliest.

First, the league got this announcement out of the way. And Wembanyama's win was accompanied by a slew of milestones.

— Every other winner of the award had been at least 23. Wembanyama doesn't turn 23 until next January.

— The Spurs became the first franchise with four players to win DPOY, which was first handed out in the 1982-83 season. The others? Alvin Robertson in 1986, David Robinson in 1992 and Kawhi Leonard in 2015 and 2016.

— Wembanyama joins Robinson and Michael Jordan as the only players to win both Rookie of the Year and DPOY.

“I’ve had the chance to have great coaches over my career who have taught me great habits on defense,” Wembanyama said.

The biggest accomplishment may be this: Wemby got every voter to agree.

Golden State's Stephen Curry was the unanimous MVP in 2016 and in the 10 seasons that have followed, there have been only two instances of a player collecting 100% of the first-place votes for an award.

Those were Wembanyama for Rookie of the Year in 2024, and now this.

No player in at least the last 50 seasons — and maybe ever, since it's hard to say with certainty because some full voting results for awards handed out generations ago are not known publicly — has won two major individual awards unanimously.

It's the 10th known unanimous pick in any vote for MVP, Rookie of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, Most Improved Player, DPOY or Coach of the Year. And some of biggest names, including LeBron James and Michael Jordan, never won a major award unanimously.

“I feel like he is one of the hardest workers that I’ve ever been around,” Johnson said. “He takes his craft very seriously. I feel like this is just a small token of what’s to come for Victor. He’s a special player now. He’s a special player on the court and even more special person off the court as well. This is just a small token, small flowers that’s given to him for Defensive Player of the Year.”

Holmgren and Thompson both got votes for the first time; a panel of reporters and broadcasters who cover the league were asked to pick their top three in the category, with ballots due last week before the playoffs started.

Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert — a four-time DPOY winner — was fourth, followed, in order, by Toronto’s Scottie Barnes, Boston’s Derrick White, Oklahoma City’s Cason Wallace, Houston’s Amen Thompson, Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels and New York’s OG Anunoby.

There was a three-way tie for 11th between Detroit’s Jalen Duren, Golden State’s Draymond Green — the 2017 winner — and Miami’s Bam Adebayo.

Wembanyama is an MVP finalist (along with Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning MVP, and three-time winner Nikola Jokic of Denver), which almost certainly means he'll be an All-NBA first-team selection. And the DPOY win means he'll also be on the All-Defensive team, so the Frenchman is assured of no fewer than four trophies from this year's award season.

“We often overlook the team aspect,” Wembanyama said. “I’m sitting here. I happen to be the guy who’s put in the spotlight, but I am part of a system and I couldn’t get this award and I couldn’t do what I do if it wasn’t for my teammates ... and my coaching staff.”

AP freelance writer Raul Dominguez contributed to this report.

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San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, center right, greets fans after an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks, Friday, April 10, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) celebrates a play against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half in Game 1 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series in San Antonio, Sunday, April 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) celebrates a score against the Portland Trail Blazers during the second half in Game 1 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series in San Antonio, Sunday, April 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

MEXICO CITY (AP) — An armed man standing atop one of the historic Teotihuacán pyramids opened fire on tourists Monday, leaving one Canadian tourist dead and six people injured at the archaeological site an hour north of Mexico’s capital, authorities said.

The shooter later died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to a statement.

The local government said four people were wounded by gunshots and two were injured from falls. The victims were taken to hospitals for treatment. They include Colombian, Russian and Canadian tourists, the local government said. The extent of their injuries was not immediately clear.

Video and photos published by local news organizations show a man standing with a gun on top of a pyramid while people duck for cover. A number of gunshots ring out in the videos.

A tour guide, who spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to put his job at risk, said he was leading a group down one of the pyramids around 11:30 a.m. when the man began to shoot, and a number of people stumbled in fear and fell down the stairs.

“When he saw that we were descending he began to shoot downward,” the guide said, adding that the shooter seemed to fire alternatively into the air and then at people's legs.

He said he heard between 20 and 30 gunshots ring out before security officials arrived.

In past years, staff at the archaeological site carried out security scans before people entered the area but has since stopped doing this.

The guide showed a video that he took showing a woman limping and her back covered in blood and another man’s arm being bandaged.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on social media that the shooting would be investigated and that she was in touch with the Canadian Embassy.

“What happened today in Teotihuacán deeply pains us. I express my most sincere solidarity with the affected individuals and their families,” she wrote.

Anita Anand, Canada’s foreign affairs minister, said on X that as a “result of a horrific act of gun violence, a Canadian was killed and another wounded in Teotihuacán” and that her “thoughts are with their family and loved ones. ”

The Teotihuacán pyramids are a series of massive structures on the outskirts of Mexico City built by three different ancient civilizations. As one of Mexico's most important touristic destinations, the site drew more than 1.8 million international visitors last year, according to government figures.

Security officials found a gun, a knife and ammunition after the shooting.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Police patrol the pyramids after authorities said a gunman opened fire in Teotihuacan, Mexico, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

Forensic workers carry the body of a victim down a pyramid after authorities said a gunman opened fire, in Teotihuacan, Mexico, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

Police and forensic workers stand on a pyramid after authorities said a gunman opened fire in Teotihuacan, Mexico, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

Forensic workers remove a victim's body from a pyramid after authorities said a gunman opened fire in Teotihuacan, Mexico, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

FILE - The Pyramid of the Moon, left, and the Pyramid of the Sun, back right, are seen along with smaller structures lining the Avenue of the Dead, in Teotihuacan, Mexico, March 19, 2020. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)