San Antonio Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama, this season’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year, fittingly spearheads the 2025-26 NBA All-Defensive First Team, which the league announced Friday night. That group also features another Western Conference finals standout, Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren.

Before facing off in this year’s playoffs, Wembanyama and Holmgren clocked out first and third, respectively, in blocks league-wide. Receiving all 100 first-place votes, the otherworldly Wembanyama won DPOY unanimously — he’s the first player in NBA history to do so — but Holmgren came in second, albeit in a distant but still notable runner-up finish.

Those 7-footers are accompanied by fellow DPOY finalist, Detroit Pistons wing Ausar Thompson, on the All-Defensive First Team. That unit includes Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert and Boston Celtics guard Derrick White as well.

The league’s All-Defensive Second Team consists of Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes, Thunder guard Cason Wallace, Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo, New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby, and Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels.

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The NBA also awarded the Social Justice Champion award, which was given to Adebayo, as announced by inaugural award winner Carmelo Anthony.

Here’s a refresher of what the league’s top-three defensive players, at least in terms of DPOY voting, accomplished this season:

Wembanyama’s defensive prowess is well-documented. He’s led the league in blocks three years in a row and averaged 3.1 rejections per game this time around. The 22-year-old is the best rim protector in the game. A wall in the paint, Wembanyama does an admirable job avoiding foul trouble. In fact, he fouled out only twice during the regular season. Even though the Spurs have a capable backup at the five in Luke Kornet, Wembanyama’s on-off numbers still sparkle. The French native made the All-Defensive First Team as a rookie, and now he’s back after hitting the minimum games played requirement to be eligible for end-of-season awards.

Holmgren stars for a suffocating OKC team that wrapped the regular season ranked first in defensive rating (106.5) for the second year in a row. This season, the Gonzaga product played in 69 games, an encouraging sign for a frontcourt pillar who’s had injury issues early in his NBA career, and he flexed his ability to effectively contest shots at the cup. In fact, of players who defended at least 300 field-goal attempts at the rim this season, Holmgren allowed the lowest field-goal percentage (47.7%) on those close-range shots. Plus, Holmgren’s 7 defensive rebounds per game were a career high. He’s thrived at the four next to center Isaiah Hartenstein, yet he can still slide to center when necessary. This is his first NBA All-Defensive Team honor.

The same goes for Thompson, whose 2 steals per game were tops in the league. His active hands (and arms) enabled him to wreak havoc. His name pops on the deflections leaderboard. And in just his third NBA season, the former Overtime Elite phenom stacked at least four steals in 10 games. He had seven in a March 20 win over the Golden State Warriors. Thompson was a key ingredient for a Detroit Pistons defense that ranked only behind the Thunder in defensive rating (108.9) during the 2025-26 campaign.

Beyond that trio, it’s important to note that Gobert has been a mainstay on these lists. He, and his team, felt he was deserving of DPOY finalist recognition this season. Gobert’s won that award four times. He’s now made nine All-Defensive Teams, including eight All-Defensive First Teams. Another Frenchman, Gobert averaged 11.5 rebounds per game and finished with 33 double-doubles during the regular season.

He remains one of best stop getters in the NBA, and he’s certainly worthy of highlighting, even as he drifts toward his mid-30s.