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Karl-Anthony Towns was introduced to Victor Wembanyama on Friday night as the San Antonio Spurs welcomed the Minnesota Timberwolves for the 2023 NBA In-Season Tournament. Wembanyama showed off why he's already among the best rim protectors in the league.
The Spurs were up 15-6 with around eight minutes left in the first quarter. Rudy Gobert was posting up Wembenyama when Zach Collins came in for the help. Gobert had no other choice but to pass the ball to Towns, who was at the top of the key.
Towns drove to the basket and bumped into Collins before Wembanyama blocked his shot down to the ground. Jeremy Sochan got the ball but lost control, and the possession was back with the Timberwolves.
Here's the video of Wemby's block on KAT:
Victor Wembanyama entered Friday's game averaging 2.4 blocks per game, which is fourth in the NBA, behind Anthony Davis, Daniel Gafford and Chet Holmgren. Wembanyama's defense is already a game-changer for the San Antonio Spurs.
Even NBA players are surprised by the effect of Wemby's length. He's consistently blocking 3-point shots and disrupting the passing lanes. Paul George raved about Wemby's defense on a recent episode of his "Podcast P" show.
"That's what stood out when we played him," George said. "He had a play against Russ, where Russ went to the paint, and you know Russ, it's his patent (move) like, he will get into the paint, he will skip and survey the floor.
"And I am watching him, (Wembanyama's) long a** arm comes and tips the ball from behind him. And you can tell Russ was like, 'Yo, who the f*ck hit this ball?'"
Rudy Gobert feels like a "proud dad" after Victor Wembanyama's success
Victor Wembanyama first came into prominence when a video of him playing against Rudy Gobert went viral.
Gobert put the youngster under his wing in France and now feels like a "proud dad" watching Wemby take over the NBA.
"I'm kind of like a proud dad when I watch him play," Gobert told reporters ahead of the Minnesota Timberwolves game against the San Antonio Spurs on Friday.
"Really happy for him. He's put in the work, so you know he'd dedicated like I've probably never seen a 19-year-old dedicated. "So he's been doing some incredible things, and it's going to be fun to face each other and yeah, just go out there, try to get a win."
