Victor Wembanyama made his mark on the NBA last season with a rookie campaign like no other. While his exceptional gameplay dazzled fans, it also made opponents rethink their strategies. Even DeMar DeRozan admitted to being caught off guard by the youngster.
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DeRozan, who was with the Bulls last season, reflected on second-guessing his moves when they played the Spurs. He recounted driving to the basket during one of their matchups, only to pull back from attempting the shot at the final moment.
“We played them this year. I swear I had a drive to the lane. I’m on one side of the key, he on the other side. I stopped for the layup and pulled it back out. He was on the other side of the key… I just knew he had the recovery length to be able to f***ing block whatever I throw up.”
This substantiated the remarkable rookie season Wemby had. For context, his average of 21.4 points and 10.6 rebounds per game made him one of the four rookies in the NBA history of record 20-10. He joined an elite group that included Shaquille O’Neal, David Robinson, and Alonzo Mourning.
The Spurs center even surpassed these legends in assists per game (3.9), three-pointers made (128), and three-point shooting percentage (32.5%). He also went toe-to-toe with them in blocks per game (3.6), two-point percentage (53.4%), and free-throw shooting (79.6%).
These stats suggest that Wembanyama is on track to become a game-changing two-way player. With the legendary five-time NBA champion head coach Gregg Popovich by his side, and Point God Chris Paul joining the Spurs in the off-season, the youngster could tap into this potential sooner than many expect.
Even DeRozan acknowledged this possibility, declaring, “You just look him in the eye bro, you gonna know. He gonna be one of the ones, for sure.”
NBA teams will undoubtedly strategize to counter the Frenchman’s on-court threat in the upcoming season. What remains to be seen is how Wemby overcomes those challenges to take his gameplay to the next level.
