Crowned rookie of the year, Victor Wembanyama certainly did not steal his title last season ahead of Chet Holmgren.

But how does the Thunder player see things? He was honest on a rather thorny subject.

After an absolutely crazy season, Victor Wembanyama was unsurprisingly named rookie of the year by the NBA.

He was widely acclaimed by journalists, to the point where he even finished second for the DPOY, behind Rudy Gobert.

Deserved for the Frenchman who shocked observers with his prowess, even if Chet Holmgren was not far behind.

In front for some during the first months, Holmgren did not keep up the pace when Wemby switched to the pivot position.

Not very important for Chet who finds himself in a team very different from the Spurs. At the Thunder, the franchise has the ambition to play for the title and with a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren is not seen as a first option in attack.

Chet Holmgren cash on the disappointment of the ROTY
If we take into account the crazy season of Jalen Williams, Holmgren was not even a second option.

But that is not important, he who prioritizes victory in an ambitious team. Present in the last episode of Paul George’s podcast, Chet is therefore not bitter for the title of ROY. Especially since the criteria are vague according to him.

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Chet Holmgren on the title of rookie of the year: “I didn’t see it the same way as the others.

I don’t want to make a particular duel what it is not, because it’s all about winning a basketball game.

You don’t want to fall into the trap and turn it into a 1v1.

There’s always a bit of competitiveness, especially when you’re playing against very good players.”

“(Before the match against Wemby) I knew we had to be in shape for this match, but I didn’t want to change the team’s game plan just because the Spurs were there. (…) If you’ve never played an NBA basketball game, you’re a rookie, until you play 82 games. But for the ROY, Wemby had a great season, he won, he deserves it.

But I don’t want to debate because the criteria change every time.”

The criteria change, yes, but not often when we talk about the rookie of the year.

The fact is that the team record has never been important, much to Chet’s dismay. But the latter remains classy, ​​aware that Wembanyama did not steal his victory.

Chet Holmgren knows that Victor Wembanyama deserved his trophy after a crazy season.

But as he is right to point out, the criteria for individual awards are sometimes difficult to understand.

It is up to the NBA to do something about it.