Victor Wembanyama is generally viewed as the best prospect in the 2023 NBA Draft. There’s no doubt that he’s already managed to impress analysts and fans with his recent performance against the G-League Ignite, and he will have another opportunity to face them today.
LeBron James is clearly one of the people impressed with what Victor Wembanyama showed. He claimed that Wembanyama is “like an alien” and added that the French prospect is “for sure a generational talent”.
“What do I think of him? Probably the same as everybody else thinks. Everybody is labeling [players] this ‘unicorn’ thing; everybody has been a ‘unicorn’ over the last couple years, but he’s more like an alien,” James told reporters. “I’ve never seen — no one has ever seen — anyone as tall as he is but as fluid as he is and as graceful as he is out on the floor. I mean, at 7-foot-4 or 7-foot-5 or 7-foot-3 or whatever the case may be, [with] his ability to put the ball on the floor, shoot step-back jumpers out of the post, step-back threes, catch-and-shoot threes, block shots — he’s for sure a generational talent.
There is no doubt that LeBron James is right about Wembanyama being a unique player that people have not seen before. It seems as though there is a chance that James’ Los Angeles Lakers are able to draft him, but there’s a huge catch.
The Lakers Could Draft Victor Wembanyama In 2023, But He Will Go To The Pelicans Because Of A Pick Swap
NBA analyst Harrison Faigen recently pointed out that there is a scenario where the Los Angeles Lakers “have bad luck” and are a subpar team again, thus winning the lottery. If they were to get the No. 1 pick, they would be able to draft Victor Wembanyama. However, they would have to send that pick to the New Orleans Pelicans.
https://twitter.com/hmfaigen/status/1577501934008811521
Haha could you guys imagine if the Lakers had bad luck again, missed the playoffs and won the lottery and the Pelicans got Wemby haha just thought about that randomly lol
The reason that the Los Angeles Lakers have to send their pick to the New Orleans Pelicans in this scenario is that the Pelicans have the right to swap picks with the Lakers, due to the Lakers’ inclusion of a 2023 swap in the Anthony Davis trade.
2023 first round draft pick to New Orleans (swap, New Orleans incoming)
New Orleans has the right to swap its 2023 1st round pick for the L.A. Lakers’ 2023 1st round pick [L.A. Lakers-New Orleans-Washington, 7/6/2019]
There is no doubt that it would be fun to see Victor Wembanyama on the Los Angeles Lakers, but it is clear that they will not be able to keep him to add him to their current roster.
However, the New Orleans Pelicans would make a solid destination for Victor Wembanyama as well, as the team would pair him with elite power forward Zion Williamson. It remains to be seen if the scenario that Harrison Faigen proposed comes to pass, but it’s definitely a possibility.
