Michael S. Wright
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- Joined ESPN in 2010.
- Previously covered Bears for ESPN.com
- Played college football at West Texas A&M.
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SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio Spurs star Victor Vembanyama has agreed to a five-year contract extension with a maximum rookie contract value of $252 million, sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania on Friday.
The deal includes a player option for season five, sources said. Wembanyama decided to go with a maximum of 25% instead of 30% of the Supermax escalators to $303 million after he and Spurs went through several frameworks, sources said. The deal could potentially save the Spurs approximately $50 million over the next five years.
“Spurs family, I’m here to stay,” Wembanyama wrote on social media on Friday. “Whatever it takes.”
Spurs family, I’m here to stay.
Whatever it takes🖤— Wemby (@wemby) July 10, 2026
Because there are no escalators in his new contract, Wembanyama’s deal is the third-largest rookie extension in NBA history behind Cade Cunningham of the Pistons and Evan Mobley of the Cavaliers, who each have five-year extensions worth $269 million.
Spurs Chairman Peter J. Holt, CEO R.S. Buford, general manager Brian Wright and coach Mitch Johnson traveled to Paris on Friday to meet and spend time with Wembanyama, who is from France, as well as his family and representatives.
San Antonio has been working closely with Wembanyama and his representatives to propose a full supermax and various expansion options, sources said. But Vembanyama ultimately chose to sacrifice the contract to give him and the organization the opportunity to build a sustainable title contender around him.
The 22-year-old was cleared to negotiate a contract extension a day after the Spurs were eliminated by the New York Knicks in five games of the NBA Finals. Wembanyama kicked off the offseason with a trip to France, where he attended the Louis Vuitton SS27 men’s show on NBA Draft night.
“It’s been a hell of a year from an experience standpoint,” Wembanyama said after San Antonio lost Game 5 of the NBA Finals. “I don’t think we could have learned more and gained more experience in one playoff game, in one season and personally in 18 months. It was hard and full of lessons.”
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The 2025-26 NBA Defensive Player of the Year and leader in blocked shots, Wembanyama earned first-team All-NBA recognition during a campaign that also saw him named to his second All-Star team and first as a starter. He became only the sixth player in Spurs franchise history to be named an All-Star starter, joining George Gervin, Alvin Robertson, David Robinson, Tim Duncan and Kawhi Leonard.
Last season, Wembanyama played in 64 games and set career highs in points (25.0) and rebounds (11.5) with 3.1 assists.
Vembanyama recorded a league-high 3.08 blocks per game and 1.03 steals and became the seventh player in league history to average at least 25 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in a season.
Wembanyama had 42 games with 10 or more rebounds, 42 double-doubles and one triple-double, including the fastest double-double in NBA history on March 30 when he had 10 points and 10 rebounds in 8:31 against the Chicago Bulls.
Meanwhile, the starting group of Wembanyama, De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell and Julian Champagne posted a 21-3 regular season record, ranking second in the NBA behind Oklahoma City. The starting lineup, which will return in 2026-27, finished last season with a plus-18.5 points per 100 possessions.