Superstar players in basketball have always followed a blueprint and then paved their own way once they acquired the knowledge to make the best use of their skills.
Kobe Bryant famously copied Michael Jordan. LeBron James was built like a buff version of Magic Johnson, and he could pick up inspiration from there, or even from Bulls’ star Scottie Pippen. Steph Curry had John Stockton and Steve Nash to learn from. Every kind of superstar has evolved from a line of other superstars who carried similar talents.
It looks like in today’s game, Victor Wembanyama has slowly carved out a place for himself where he’s a young star still figuring it out, but his unicorn-like stature allows him to dominate the game in multiple ways.
But there’s a unique issue with the Spurs star that could be worrisome for the pace of his growth. Former NBA champion Richard Jefferson explained it on the Road Trippin podcast.
“Obviously, Wemby is dominating, but he has no blueprint. He has no blueprint for himself. It’s like you had power forwards, certain players that kind of like, even LeBron, you had a Magic Johnson blueprint, you had a Scottie Pippen blueprint. Like Michael Jordan had, you have a Kobe Bryant.”
“Like, there are certain blueprints of like, ‘Hey, this is who I am, this is how other players like me have dominated the game with this skillset.’ He’s at such a level that there’s never been a player like him, so we know he can dominate the game, but how does he figure out a way to dominate the game at such a consistent level that it’s unstoppable?”
The Spurs coaching staff is also struggling to wrap their heads around everything that Wembanyama is capable of and can achieve in this league. But since no one has been like him before, there’s no precedent. There’s never been a 7’5″ stretch five who can handle the ball like a guard and also take just two steps inside the arc to reach the basket.
There was the former Houston Rockets center Ralph Sampson, who was built like Wembanyama and could shoot like the Spurs star. But he played in the 80s, and in that era, centers who shot were looked down upon. Also, he played in a different time and never reached his potential, so Wembanyama can’t take anything from Sampson’s career.
“They haven’t figured it out. And it might take them a little bit longer, because there is no blueprint. Right? You can see, you had small guards that could score, you know, Allen Iverson, you had Isaiah Thomas, although they were a little different, but you had guys like that. You had John Stockton and Jason Kidd, Gary Payton,” Jefferson added.
“He’s such a player that is so far above any blueprint we’ve ever seen. That means it’s even harder for the coach to figure out how to use him best because his body has gotten so much stronger, but where is it best used? Because we don’t have a blueprint,” Jefferson concluded.
In the seven games he played this season, he’s averaged 25.6 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists, shooting 50.8% from the field and 26.1% from the three-point line. He’s also averaging 4.1 blocks and 1.3 steals a game. Even his turnovers per game have gone below his career average.
Wembanyama is struggling to find the right fit between shooting, playing with his back to the board, and dominating the paint. There are so many things he can do on the court that the Spurs coaching staff has to find the best possible combination under his umbrella and reduce redundancies from his game.
Once the Spurs accomplish that, it will be difficult to stop Wembanyama from achieving the success his stature and size allow for.
