In December, Victor Wembanyama missed time with a left calf strain that sidelined him for nearly a month, but upon his return, he made his intentions clear. Speaking to ESPN’s Malika Andrews, the San Antonio Spurs star declared that when he hit the court again, he would be the best player in the league. That signature cockiness—and admitted greed—echoes the mindset we’ve seen from past superstars who carried the heavy crown as the face of the NBA. According to Kendrick Perkins, Adam Silver’s search for the next superstar is officially over.

Wembanyama is leading the pack of the hottest teams in the NBA. The Alien plays with unmatched eagerness, thrives under coaching, and actively challenges the best, including the reigning MVP and his Oklahoma City Thunder. For Perkins, Wembanyama is the real deal Adam Silver has been seeking.

“We didn’t give Adam Silver in the NBA congratulations today. They actually found their new face of the NBA. Yeah, Victor Wembanyama,” Perkins said during his appearance on NBA Today. “He’s he is their new face of the NBA. And if anybody wants to argue with me, we could argue for hours or days, but you’re going to lose this argument. Here’s the reason why.”

In his third year, Wembanyama opened the 2025-26 season in spectacular fashion with a double-double of 40 points and 15 rebounds against the Dallas Mavericks on October 22, 2025—setting a franchise tone for opening night and showcasing his immediate dominance.

After recovering from a serious deep vein thrombosis (a blood clot in his right shoulder) that ended his second season prematurely in February 2025, he has returned stronger than ever. This latest campaign, following his brief December calf absence, saw him play like he wanted the NBA world to refocus on him if anyone had forgotten.

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While many superstar players shy away from the spotlight or hesitate to claim the crown, leaving it vacant in the later years of LeBron James and Stephen Curry, Wembanyama wants it more than anyone in the league.

“When you talk about a guy that’s embracing that role and embodying that, he wants that, right? He checked that box. When you talk about a guy that’s gonna perform at a high level and do things that we’ve never seen before, he’s gonna do that. When you talk about a guy that’s gonna put but** in the seats, not just at the crib, [it’s Wembanyama],” Perkins added.

While Wembanyama has been putting up numbers on both ends of the floor, his impact goes beyond himself. Wemby is leading the Spurs into fresh territory and challenging the OKC Thunder out of its den. The defending champions now look like a regular team, and it was the Spurs, led by the Frenchman, who cracked the tough layer of the Thunder and exposed their vulnerability.

Kendrick Perkins measures Victor Wembanyama’s Spurs real threat to defending champions Thunder

The OKC Thunder started their season with a 24-1 record and looked like they had an unchallenged road to repeating the championship. However, the story has flipped in the last few weeks. In their last 20 games, they have a 5-6 record in the last 11 games. While some losses have come in the absence of SGA, the crack had begun while the reigning MVP was still in the lineup.

Are the defending champions vulnerable? “I wouldn’t say vulnerable, but I would just say that other teams around the league are looking them eye to eye right now,” Perkins said about the state of the Thunder. 

The Thunder have struggled notably against the Spurs this season. While OKC looked nearly unbeatable early, San Antonio holds a strong head-to-head edge (including wins on December 13, December 25, and February 4, with the series favoring the Spurs significantly). At one point, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander discussed chasing the Warriors’ 73-9 record, but OKC sits at around 42-14 heading into the All-Star break.

“And that one team is the one guy that we just showed, the San Antonio Spurs. They’re on their heels like a pair of church socks. And when you think about what the Spurs are doing right now, they check all the boxes. They’re playing at an elite level.”

The Thunder have the toughest schedule after the All-Star break, right behind the Denver Nuggets. On the downside, it can negatively impact their winning record. However, on the positive side, it will also help the Thunder prepare better for the playoffs. But so far, it doesn’t look like they are going beyond the hurdle that the seven-footer in San Antonio is putting in their way.