One year ago, then 19-year-old Victor Wembanyama’s French League games (LNB Pro A) were broadcast live on the NBA App. So, too, were his team’s (Metropolitans 92) two games against the NBA G-League Ignite, who featured another 2023 NBA Draft lottery pick in point guard Scoot Henderson. Henderson went third in the draft to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Suffice to say, the hype for Wembanyama was rather unprecented. In the modern era, truly, only the hype of LeBron James is in the same realm. Michael Jordan’s was tremendous, too, after he signed a five year, $2.5 million deal with Nike in October of 1984. James, at age 18, had to answer questions about being compared to the likes of Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Jordan.
How’s that for pressure?
In Wembanyama’s case, the hype was more mysterious. A 7 foot, 5 inch kid from overseas who you heard could do everything a guard could do - dribble, crossover, shoot threes. But how many that were stateside saw him play? There were scouts, of course, mock drafts, and projections. But no sample size at Duke, North Carolina, or any other college basketball powerhouse.
It was fitting that he was drafted to an organization in the San Antonio Spurs who have a proven track record of making stars of non-American born players. Think Tim Duncan (U.S. Virgin Islands), Tony Parker (France), and Manu Ginobili (Argentina). It was the best possible outcome to be drafted to a team coached by one of the all-time great coaches in Gregg Popovich, who has forgotten more basketball than his puppy young group probably knows.
Not long after the start of the 2023-2024 NBA season, the winner of the Rookie of the Year award sort of became a formality. 71 games later, and it became a reality. 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.6 blocks (tops in the league), and add 1.2 steals to boot. In just 29.7 minutes per game. 47 percent from the field, 33 from three-point range, and 80 from the line.
38 points and 10 rebounds in just his fifth ever game, against the Phoenix Suns. 30, 13, and 6 blocks against the Los Angeles Lakers (and Anthony Davis) in December. Nine more 30-point performances followed, including 40 points, 20 rebounds, and 7 blocks against the New York Knicks (the Eastern Conference’s two seed) on March 29.
The sixth unanimous Rookie of the Year since 1984. The second rookie since Manute Bol to lead the NBA in blocks. The first rookie since Alonzo Mourning and Shaquille O’Neal to register 250 blocks. The youngest player in history to reach at least 5 in five categories in a game (27 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 5 blocks, 5 steals, on Jan. 21), per the NBA. The first player since O’Neal to average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 assists in a season. O’Neal was a 28-year-old MVP at the time.
Wembanyama’s rookie season did not correlate to team success, the Spurs finishing 22-60, primed for another high pick come June’s draft. Popovich experimented throughout the season with different lineups, playing Jeremy Sochan, 6 foot 8, at point guard a lot and not playing Wembanyama heavy minutes. It was a trial by fire approach for the young team, a cautious but intellectual approach with the 20-year-old star by his Hall-of-Fame coach.
What comes next will surely be, health permitting, more dominance. Saying “he is the greatest rookie since….he is the best top pick since….he will be better than…” is better left for the debate shows, and saying he is the next Wilt, the next Kareem, the next (insert legend here), is unfair and disingenuous to the legacies of the all-time big men. Ralph Sampson has been a popular comparison - the height, the athleticism, the competency with the basketball in his hands. All of it, though, puts an extraordinary amount of pressure on Wembanyama, just out of his teenage years.
They were them, and Victor is Victor.
Truth be told, we do not know what Wembanyama could end up being. We got a glimpse, and with that glimpse, the imagination goes wild. We do, though, have a 71-game sample size to go on.
Get him a veteran floor general (Chris Paul? Russell Westbrook?), or a prime playmaker (Trae Young?) and you’ll want to watch out. Giving him either a veteran to learn from or an in-their-prime star will accelerate his learning process, enhance his game even more so, and give him the opportunity for more team success. It will place him firmly on the national radar that even the most casual of fans will have to recognize.
For the 20-year-old, it is just the beginning.
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