Victor Wembanyama made his much-awaited NBA debut tonight against the Dallas Mavericks. Suiting up for the San Antonio Spurs, Wembanyama didn’t disappoint in his first-ever NBA regular season contest as he put up an action-packed thriller of a duel against Luka Doncic.
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Several analysts and enthusiasts expected the Dallas Mavericks to blow past Gregg Popovich’s boys. However, the Spurs put up some great competition. A contest that went down to the wire witnessed a total of 11 lead changes. And at the end, despite Wemby’s 4th quarter heroics, it was the Mavs that clinched a 126-119 victory in the season opener.
While Doncic – 33-point triple-double – was the star of the night, Wemby was pretty impressive too. The 7ft 4” French phenom played merely 23:19 minutes but stuffed the stat sheet. Shooting the ball at a highly efficient 66.7% from the field and 50% from 3FG, the teenager recorded 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and a block.
As spooky as it seems, Wemby posted a similar stat line to what a Spurs legend, Tim Duncan, did during his debut game 26 years ago. Taking on the court on 31st October 1997, Timmy dropped 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 assists on 66.7% FG.
Victor Wembanyama might not have dominated the game like every pundit may have expected him to. However, there were several moments during the course of the game where Wemby showcased traits of having a similar style of play as Duncan – shooting in the post and defensive presence.
Victor Wembanyama linked up Tim Duncan and other Spurs legends
Victor Wembanyama had a long and tiring summer. Amid the tedious post-draft process, the 19-year-old was fortunate enough to have a meal with some of the legends of the franchise – David Robinson, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Sean Elliott.
The franchise’s all-time greats were quite impressed after meeting Wemby. Following their dinner, Elliott revealed a few takeaways that he gathered after interacting with the rookie.
“He’s a very, very mature young man and he asked all the right questions. I mean, I think we all came away from that dinner just more excited, more enthusiastic than we had ever been,” Elliott said on ‘The Dan Patrick Show.’
Playing for a franchise as successful as the San Antonio Spurs should motivate Wemby to lead them to their glory days. Even though his NBA career began on a losing note, it’ll be interesting to see just how well he can bounce back.
