Victor Wembanyama spoke during the Spurs‘ media day about his expectations heading into the new season. Wemby noted that much of his rookie year was about him and the Spurs learning to play at a high level, but this year is about them putting the learnings together and playing winning basketball.
“These expectations, I just manage like I managed the others for years. I just focus on my actual responsibilities. I don’t have any actual responsibility to any of you (the media). Just the guys in the locker room and the training room with me, that’s it… I’m glad these abilities are being recognized.”
“I know eventually I’m going to be in those conversations. As always, my emphasis is going to be on winning and helping my teammates, making my teammates better. It’s no different than previous years. Last year, our expectation for ourselves was to learn… I think, towards the end of this year, we expect to win.”
Wembanyama seems poised to have a winning season with the Spurs in just his second season. And he has every reason to be confident considering what he has been able to achieve in the sport of basketball within the last year. He found great individual success in the NBA, and then team success with the French national team.
In his first season in the NBA, Wembanyama won Rookie of the Year and finished second overall in the voting for Defensive Player of the Year behind fellow countryman Rudy Gobert. Wemby’s rookie numbers were spectacular, averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 3.6 blocks per game.
He and Gobert then teamed up this summer with the French national team, leading them to the silver medal at the Paris Olympics.
Now heading into his sophomore year, Wembanyama has a chip on his shoulder and is filled with confidence. The Spurs should absolutely be in the conversation for a dark horse team in the league that can make it to the NBA playoffs.
Chris PaulOn His First Impression Of Victor Wembanyama
Victor Wembanyama’s newest teammate, veteran point guard Chris Paul also spoke during media day. He was asked about his first impressions of Victor Wembanyama, to which he noted that he got to see Wembanayama play before he made it to the NBA, and praised him for his all-roundedness and his competitive spirit.
“First time I heard of Wemby might have been a couple of years ago. I actually went to go see him play when he played against the Ingite in Vegas… He’s good at everything. You probably expect that. I don’t care what it is, he’s competitive and he’s good at damn near everything.”
Chris Paul clearly thinks very highly of Wembanyama and is looking forward to playing alongside the Frenchman. Paul has a history of elevating big men that he plays with, such as DeAndre Jordan on the Clippers, Clint Capela on the Rockets, and Deandre Ayton on the Suns.
But it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest that Wembanyama is far better than all of those players, or at least has a far higher ceiling. So Paul could work his magic again and elevate Wembanyama to even higher heights during their time together.
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