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The San Antonio Spurs whipped the Detroit Pistons 123-95 with Victor Wembanyama in street clothes, cheering for his team. A day before the said showdown, the Spurs announced that the rookie’s season had come to an end to rest a sore right ankle. Despite the incredibly high expectations, most have already asserted that the French phenom has exceeded every one of those.
Wembanyama’s final game this season was the exclamation point to what is likely going to end with a Rookie of the Year award campaign. “Wemby” led San Antonio to a stunning 23-point come-from-behind win against no less than Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. The injury-depleted Spurs looked ready to quit before the Frenchman roared them back to life starting the third quarter.
Victor Wembanyama led the comeback by dropping 17 points in three minutes midway through the third period. He was again at the center of things in the fourth frame when the Spurs detonated a 14-2 blast that turned the momentum to their side. Devonte’ Graham’s runner with 0.9 seconds remaining completed the stunning reversal.
When asked by a reporter where he sees his game right now and where he could be in his prime, Wembanyama’s response was scary. He said that he is only “15% between my first NBA game and what I hope I will be in my prime.”
Basketball fans promptly reacted on X, formerly Twitter:
“GGs when Wemby gets to 100%”
A Boston Celtics fan couldn’t agree more:
“Yeah we’re f**ked”
Guru offers a sound advice to fans of the Spurs’ opponents:
“If your favorite team isn’t the Spurs they gotta win within like 2 years lol”
One was only interested in how Victor Wembanyama came up with that specific number:
"What formula did he use to get the 15%?"
Somehow there’s always a doubter:
“Most overhyped player I’ve ever seen his ceiling is Brandon Ingram”
In just his first year in the NBA, one can easily make an argument that Victor Wembanyama is already better than Brandon Ingram. “Wemby” could at least be in the top 15 best players in the league already.
Moving Victor Wembanyama to center paid off big-time for the Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs were wary of the pounding the reed-thin rookie would take in his rookie season. Gregg Popovich and his coaching staff decided to make him a power forward and allow Zach Collins to jostle with the opponents’ bruising bigs.
The strategy stunted what “Wemby” could have done earlier. It didn’t help that the Spurs forced forward Jeremy Sochan to play point guard. San Antonio looked out of sorts on both ends with Wembanyama suffering the most.
After 20 games, the Spurs moved Victor Wembanyama to center and relegated Collins to the bench. The Frenchman’s growth zoomed once he played his natural position. Wembanyama’s defense, which was already formidable, looked overwhelming at times. Whether as the primary or help defender, players hesitated to even attempt a shot when he was around.
On offense, teams started double-teaming him every time he had the ball. The 20-year-old rookie also showed flashes of superb passing and reading of the game as the hub of San Antonio’s offense. Wembanyama wasn’t exaggerating when he said he was at 15% of what he could be.
Year 2 in the Victor Wembanyama era for the Spurs could be even scarier. LeBron James' comments about him being an "alien" is looking more and more like an accurate description.
Guess the Lakers players!
