Former Celtics Star Makes Bold Statement On Victor Wembanyama’s ‘Top 5’ Potential In Coming Years

Victor Wembanyama had a promising rookie season, somehow living up to the surreal expectations set on his shoulders. The basketball world is now awaiting the next big step that the San Antonio Spurs youngster is going to take. According to Kendrick Perkins, joining many other analysts to believe so, Wembanyama can become one of the top five players in the league as early as within the next two seasons.

During an episode of NBA Today, Malika Andrews asked the panel to predict a timeline for when Victor Wembanyama becomes a top-five player in the NBA. Kendrick Perkins instantly answered, “max 2 years.”

Wembanyama already proved to be an incredible two-way talent, putting up ungodly stats during the 2023-2024 season. Building upon the same, Perks believes that the addition of Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes will help the Frenchman take his game to the next level.

“I’m gonna say max 2 years before Wemby is gonna be in the top 5 conversation and it might be this year. This year, he’s gonna be the best defensive player on the floor. But what he did in his rookie season, averaging 21 (points), 10 (rebounds), and leading the league in blocked shots… The man is gonna dominate on both ends… I’m telling you: This man is ready to tear up the league.”

It’s been merely 3 months since the 2023-2024 season commenced and Wemby is already showing signs of improving drastically. By stuffing the stat line with 19 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, and 7 stocks (steals + blocks), the 7ft 4” prodigy led the French national team to a 78-66 win during the first match of their 2024 Olympics campaign.

Perkins is also spot-on when claiming that Chris Paul will help Wembanyama take his game to the next level. Apart from being a great mentor, Paul will also be feeding Wemby with the ball during numerous pick-and-roll plays that they are expected to run. While also having the motivation to win multiple Defensive Player of the Year awards, the youngster has the potential to perform at an MVP level and take over the league as the best player for several years to come.

Wembanyama displays confidence after losing the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year

Wemby had a terrific season, particularly on the defensive end. Apart from having the fifth-most defensive win shares and an individual defensive rating of 105.8, he led the league with 3.6 blocks per game.

Despite his overwhelming performance, the Spurs center wasn’t presented with the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy. Instead, Gobert was named as the DPOY even though he recorded 1.5 blocks and 0.5 steals per game less than his compatriot.

The snub didn’t bother the 20-year-old. Instead, he seemed happy for his countryman. However, Wemby did seem confident when warming Gobert that this would be the last time the latter would win the prestigious accolade. “Let him win it now, because after that it’s no longer his turn.” Wembanyama said.

Gaining experience from his first year in the league, there is no doubt that Wembanyama will improve his defensive capabilities. His inevitable improvement certainly makes him an early frontrunner to win the 2025 DPOY among many other honors.