When it seems like NBA players are as talented and athletically gifted as they can possibly be, the threshold breaks again. In the 2023 NBA draft, the most mind-boggling and exciting player to ever come into the league was drafted, Victor Wembanyama.
He is a 19 year old, 7’4″ center that could realistically play at any position he pleases. He is the first ever player to be able to move at the speed and with the finesse that he does considering his size.
Wembanyama, commonly known as “Wemby” grew up in Le Chesnay, France. He has played basketball since a very young age and actually competed for a professional EuroCup team at age 15!
After playing on multiple teams in different leagues throughout France, his name become most popular on his most recent team called Metropolitans 92. They are a team in the LNB Pro A league based in Levallois-Perret.
Here Wemby began to shine. At 18 year’s old he averaged 21.6 points per game, 3.1 blocks, and 10.4 rebounds by the end of the season. He was placed on the All-Pro A first team and was considered the best scorer, shot blocker, defender, and overall best young player in the league when entering the leagues tournament.
The Metropolitans, led by Wemby, ended up losing 3-0 in the finals to AS Monaco. After the tournament, Wemby was named the league MVP, this made him the youngest player to ever achieve this award.
With that in mind, it’s obvious that Wemby was incredibly sought after throughout the NBA. The draft lottery ended up being won by the San Antonio Spurs, and the whole world knew exactly who they would be choosing.
With the NBA season kicking off, it will be a lot of fun to see how Wemby does on the Spurs. Seeing how he matches up against some of the worlds best players that have been dominating for years will be very interested. The biggest question is if he will be able to hold his own against other big men in the league at his low weight of 210 lbs, facing off against some players that weigh up to 350.
Regardless, Wembanyama has already made a huge impact on the NBA before even stepping onto the court. Will he be what he is expected to be? Or will he be just another bust? Time will only tell, and NBA fans are sure excited to find that out.