Chet Holmgren Just Humiliated Himself on the NBA's Biggest Stage

Since he was a teenager, Chet Holmgren has been compared to Victor Wembanyama.

The two 7-feet-tall blue-chip prospects battled in United States and French basketball games throughout their amateur years, with Holmgren taking wins for the team but Wembanyama seen as a better overall prospect.

Since the two came into the league, Holmgren has had a chip on his shoulder. He was drafted a year prior, but he was the No. 2 pick out of Gonzaga, while Wembanyama was the first. After missing his first year due to injury, he had his rookie season alongside Wembanyama’s, and though he believed he should have been Rookie of the Year, the San Antonio Spurs player got it instead.

Even after being a key part of the Oklahoma City Thunder winning their first-ever NBA championship last season, Wembanyama was still considered the future face of the big man position in the sport.

These Western Conference finals were supposed to be where Holmgren showed that not only could he keep up with the 7-foot-4 Frenchman, but that he could neutralize him like no one ever has.

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On Saturday night, Holmgren walked off the floor in complete disarray, only scoring four points and not taking a single shot in the second half in the worst performance of his basketball career as he watched his team get eliminated from the postseason.

In a game where the Thunder needed a second option alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with Jalen Williams out with an injury, Holmgren shied away from the moment.

Every time the ball would find Holmgren’s hands, he played hot potato with the basketball, chucking the responsibility to someone like Alex Caruso or Jared McCain, hoping that they could find the basket.

When time was running out in the game and the entire Spurs team, including Wembanyama, wouldn’t let Gilgeous-Alexander shoot, Holmgren had Caruso throw up a wild three that missed everything.

This series could be the beginning of a historic run for Wembanyama and the Spurs, and Holmgren will be a footnote to that overall conquest if he surpasses the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals.

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This story was originally published May 31, 2026 at 10:54 AM.