Victor Wembanyama-Chet Holmgren beef, explained: How international career started feud between Spurs, Thunder stars originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Victor Wembanyama and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are the respective faces of the Western Conference's powerhouses, but Wembanyama's biggest Thunder rival is arguably Chet Holmgren.
Like Wembanyama, the Oklahoma City big man was once considered one of the best teenage players in the world and has developed into a crucial piece on a contender.
Wembanyama may be the more well-rounded player, but Holmgren has a championship under his belt and a legitimate chance at adding another. Wembanyama, however, beat out Holmgren for Defensive Player of the Year this season.
Here's a closer look at the beef between Wembanyama and Holmgren and how it originated on the international stage.
NBA PLAYOFFS HQ:Live NBA scores | NBA playoff schedule | NBA playoff bracket
Victor Wembanyama-Chet Holmgren beef
The parallels between Wembanyama and Holmgren are hard to ignore, as they were each considered phenoms from a young age, became top-three NBA Draft picks and continue to meet frequently in the paint as defensive anchors of West contenders.
That rivalry, however, started all the way back at the 2021 FIBA U19 World Cup, where Wembanyama competed for France at age 17 and Holmgren competed for the United States at 19. Here are the details.
2021 FIBA U19 World Cup
Wembanyama and Holmgren were matched up against one another frequently in the 2021 FIBA U19 World Cup title game, which saw the United States narrowly win 83-81 and Holmgren earn the tournament MVP award.
Holmgren has 20 months on Wembanyama, which can make a major difference at that age. While Wembanyama was only 17, Holmgren was 19 and preparing for his freshman season at Gonzaga.
Still, the matchup between the two fueled a bit of a rivalry well before either player stepped foot on an NBA court.
MORE:Inside Victor Wembanyama's family tree
Victor Wembanyama's 'ethical basketball' comments
Wembanyama's rivalry with the Thunder took off after his comments during December's NBA Cup in which he said he was proud to be part of "pure and ethical basketball" after a blowout win over Oklahoma City.
When asked to clarify his comments, Wembanyama told reporters, "In modern basketball, we see a lot of brands of basketball that don't offer much variety in dangers they propose to the opponents. Lots of isolation ball and, sometimes, kind of forced basketball. We try to propose a brand of basketball that can be described as more old school sometimes; the Spurs way as well. So it's tactically more correct basketball, in my opinion."
Many interpreted the comments as a shot at the Thunder, whose techniques to get to the foul line are often criticized by fans as "unethical."
Earlier in the year, ESPN's Marc Spears hinted that Wembanyama had the Thunder and Holmgren in particular in the back of his mind.
"I was told by somebody inside that room that Wemby is motivated by Chet," Spears said on air. "Chet having one up on him on the championship."
In December, Wembanyama dismissed the idea of a rivalry with a comment that still raised a few eyebrows. "No, I don't think about that. At least from a basketball standpoint, there's no comparison between us," Wembanyama told reporters.
Holmgren's teammate, Jaylin Williams, denied leading up to the Western Conference Finals that the Thunder star takes matchups with Wembanyama more seriously because of their history.
"I think Chet’s an All-NBA, All-Defense guy in this league. He’s an All-Star. Every night, regardless of who we're playing, who he's lined up against, he takes the same approach," Williams said. "I don't think anybody on our team wakes up because we're playing the Spurs."
MORE:Why Victor Wembanyama was named SN's 2025-26 Player of the Year
Victor Wembanyama-Chet Holmgren head-to-head NBA record
-
Spurs 4, Thunder 4
The Thunder have won a championship with Holmgren while Wembanyama and the Spurs haven't yet, but the two big men are an even 4-4 against each other in their careers.
Injuries have limited the number of matchups between the two, as Holmgren missed 50 games last season while Wembanyama has sporadically missed time across his first three seasons, but the two faced off four of the times the Spurs and Thunder met during the 2025-26 season.
After starting his career 3-1 head-to-head with Wembanyama, the Spurs star went 3-1 against Holmgren this season and 4-1 overall against Oklahoma City.
