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Victor Wembanyama, arguably one of the most anticipated prospects of NBA history, recently had his NBA Summer League debut for the San Antonio Spurs. Wembanyama only made two of 13 shots in his abysmal debut.
Carmelo Anthony, the illustrious scoring machine, had some words of advice for Wembanyama after his horrendous debut. Here is what Anthony had to say:
"Just hoop and enjoy Vegas."
Anthony averaged 22.5 points and 6.2 rebounds on 44.7% shooting from the floor in his career. He is a ten-time NBA All-Star and the 9th leading scorer in NBA history. While Anthony never won an NBA championship, he was one of the best players in the league during his prime years and even earned respect from legends like Kobe Bryant.
Anthony is a respected player whose advice will be taken seriously by Wembanyama. It is possible that Wembanyama found himself under too much pressure, given his all-time prospect potential and the sold-out Vegas arena. Thus, Anthony's advice to Wembanyama was simply for Wembanyama to not succumb to this pressure but rather to enjoy himself, his basketball, and Vegas.
This did not, however, stop fans on Twitter from ripping Anthony off. Here are some tweets from fans:
While fans were quick to point out that Anthony isn't the best person to dole out advice, given that he never won the NBA Championship, they were also quick to ridicule Wembanyama and his abysmal debut.
Wembanyama's poor debut might be the result of enjoying Vegas too much. However, it is likely that the 19-year-old simply needs some time to adjust to the NBA and also get a hold of his emotions.
Victor Wembanyama says "I didn't know what I was doing" after abysmal debut
Victor Wembanyama had one of the most-anticipated debuts since the arrival of LeBron James in the league. While the San Antonio Spurs beat the Charlotte Hornets 76-68, Wembanyama only made two of 13 shots. From the three-point range, he made one of six shots.
This was not a great offensive performance for Wembanyama. He was quick to critique his own performance and had this to say:
"Honestly, I really didn't know what I was doing on the court tonight. But I'm trying to learn for the next games, it's important to be ready for the start of the season."
Wembanyama did not live up to his reputation on the offensive end. That said, he did record eight rebounds, five blocked shots, and three assists. He was an important player on the defensive end of the court and showed much promise.
It is unclear as of now how Wembanyama will turn out to be in the NBA. He might've underperformed due to pressure and might need a short adjustment period. Or, it might be so that his game doesn't hold true at the level of the NBA. It remains to be seen in the upcoming Summer League games.
