Victor Wembanyama is truly out of this world. We’ve always known he was special, and his game last night proved that point emphatically. He scored 50 points in record time, reaching the milestone in just 26 minutes. With an offensive game that dominant, surely he took a step back on defense, right? Wrong. Apart from his 50-piece, he registered 3 blocks, 1 steal, and 5 defensive rebounds.
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His exploits are further underlining that the NBA GM quiz, which said 77% of the general managers in the league would build a franchise around him, was extremely accurate. Of course, there are always people who think otherwise, and legendary 6MOTY Lou Williams is one of them.
FanDuel TV’s ‘Run It Back’ cast featuring Williams alongside Michelle Beadle and Chandler Parsons, discussed the Spurs superstar following his career night. They discussed which superstar they’d build a team around, and two of the three panelists went with the no-brainer – Wemby.
Parsons and Beadle had no hesitation in picking the Frenchman, but the Lemon Pepper Lou had other opinions. Instead of favoring Wemby, he highlighted Anthony Edwards and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as players he would rather start a team with. He said,
“If you were going to start your organization with somebody, Wemby would be an obvious pick. But I still like an Ant Edwards or SGA now that you’ve seen what they’ve been able to do.”
"If you had to start a franchise today…" – @MichelleDBeadle
"Not even close, I'm going with Wemby." – @ChandlerParsons
"I still like Ant Edwards or SGA now that you've seen what they've been able to do." – @TeamLou23
"So Lou hates Wemby. I'm putting it in my notes." – MB 😂 pic.twitter.com/lzAlydoIuP
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) November 14, 2024
His reasoning has nothing to do with their differences in abilities but more with their impact on the game. Wembanyama has put forth extraordinary individual performances, but they haven’t equated to wins. On the other hand, Edwards and Shai are dominating while contributing to winning.
As with everything, context matters. Shai and Ant are surrounded by world-class teammates, and unfortunately for Wemby, there’s a reason the Spurs won the draft lottery to get him. The team hasn’t been competitive in years, and they haven’t made the playoffs since 2019.
However, Williams stated that this is “comparing apples to oranges” as Wembanyama is only in his second year. Regardless, Williams’ opinion suggests the gap between Victor and the rest of the young stars in the league isn’t as large as many have made it seem.
Wemby, Ant, or Shai: Who is the best to start a franchise with?
Many great players would be an ideal candidate to start a franchise with. Analyzing Edwards, Gilgeous-Alexander, and Wembanyama it’s clear which of the three is the best choice.
Edwards has taken another leap in his offensive game in the 2024-25 season. By sending Karl Anthony Towns to the Knicks, Minnesota sent an unspoken message: they’re all in on Ant. His development suggests the Timberwolves made the right decision.
He’s averaging 27.8 points and 5.2 rebounds while attempting a career-high 11.4 three-pointers per game. This increased volume of shooting places him second in the NBA in attempts from beyond the arc. That’s a significant jump from last season, where he ranked 39th.
Gilgeous-Alexander continues to build on his stellar 2023-24 season. The MVP runner-up’s production has taken a slight hit, but the team is still performing tremendously. The Thunder are 10-2, and the top team in the West.
Oklahoma City has dominated their competition thus far this season. As a result, SGA’s minutes are the lowest it’s been since his rookie season. They’re blowing teams out so often that he’s on the bench for the majority of the fourth quarter as he gets most of his job done in the first three periods.
Finally, Wembanyama’s abilities on the basketball court are truly otherworldly. One thing all these players have in common is their two-way ability. None of them are liabilities on defense. However, Wembanyama’s strengths on the defensive end are truly remarkable.
As a rookie, Wemby led the league with 3.6 blocks per game while being the runner-up for the Defensive Player of the Year award. This season he’s only increased his defensive impact. He’s currently averaging 3.8 blocks along with 1.3 steals per game.
His defensive output, coupled with his offensive abilities, creates a true unicorn on the basketball court. Wembanya is averaging 22.3 points while attempting a career-high 8.3 three-pointers per game. He’s also achieving all these things in the lowest amount of minutes of the three stars at 31.3 minutes per game.
It is a tough decision, but the immediate upside that Wembanyama possesses at 7-foot-4 makes it a tough decision to pass up on. Edwards and Gilgeous-Alexander are great players, but Wemby is truly a generational player.
