Victor Wembanyama is potentially on a generational run, where he could lead the Spurs to win his first NBA championship in his very first playoff experience during just his third year in the league.
Therefore, even before winning his first championship, he has found himself among the discussion to be the next face of the league. And rightly so, the players in the league and the media have already started making bold predictions about his career and are acting like he was born to save basketball.
But the Spurs’ legend Robert Horry feels otherwise. He feels that although the predictions may be correct about how good he is, the league should not rush to crown him its next face before he even wins his first championship.
“I’m not saying he’s not great, he’s a great defensive player, but all I’m saying is they’re trying to make him the be-all now. He is God’s gift to basketball. I’m just saying, give him time. Give him time. Let him mature. Let him take it. Don’t give it to him. Let him take it,” Horry said in his recent appearance on the Road Trippin’ show.
Kendrick Perkins rightfully explained how even LeBron James had a similar media hype at the same time in his career, where he was threatening to dethrone the Pistons (2005-06, second-round seven-game exit) and eventually went to the NBA Finals in his fourth year against the Spurs (got swept in the 2007 NBA Finals).
However, the seven-time NBA champion countered by explaining that while James was considered the future of the league, everyone still knew Kobe Bryant was the better player back then.
Moreover, Horry also pointed out that Wembanyama has better teammates right now than LeBron James did, but hinted that Wembanyama could be overshadowing them with his attention on the spotlight.
“Yeah. Now, if you say he is the future, I am 100% on that. But like I just don’t right now. And people in San Antonio, they’re great, great, great fans. They love their players, you know, and they think once they get a great player, they’re God’s gift to basketball.”
“And so when you say that, people get only the people from San Antonio got mad at me for saying it. And so for me, I just think like give him three to four more years, and if he wins two championships and three to four years, then he is the face of the league.”
“But I’m just saying that don’t anoint someone too early because he hasn’t played enough, he’s been injured, you know, one season. Okay. Okay. Yeah, he’s been great this season. Give me two more seasons like that, and I will anoint you,” Horry concluded.
At age 22, Wembanyama has already become the first unanimous Defensive Player of the Year and earned the Western Conference Finals MVP award after the Spurs defeated the defending champions, the Thunder, in seven games.
In his first postseason run, he is averaging 23.2 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.5 blocks, and 2.7 assists while shooting 51.0% from the floor and 37.0% from beyond the arc.
Against the defending champions in the last series, he averaged 27.3 points, 10.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 2.4 blocks while going 48.1% from the field and 40.0% from beyond the three-point line.
He’s only getting better as time progresses, and I can understand the point he is making about letting Wembanyama make his own case and build his own narrative instead of rushing it and forcing it on him.
Earlier in the season as well, Horry said something similar about Wembanyama, where he got a lot of criticism from the Spurs’ fans. He was simply clarifying that he knows Wembanyama has the potential to be generational, but it’s the people of San Antonio who are rushing the narrative upon him to have already become something he isn’t yet.
