One of the most hyped players to enter the league, Victor Wembanyama’s rookie campaign did not disappoint. The Spurs rookie checked every box there was as the season progressed, leaving fans and opposing players in awe. And while Wemby’s game didn’t leave much to desire, Metta World Peace was specifically impressed with his comments on Rudy Gobert.
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Metta World Peace, formerly known as Ron Artest came into the league back in 1999. Throughout his 17-year career, Artest won a DPOY award and made the All-Defensive Teams four times.
The Lakers legend joined hosts Sam Mitchell and Rick Kamla on SiriusXM NBA Radio. A hard-nosed defensive presence during his heyday, Metta chose Wemby as the player he’d pick to defend the best players in the league.
But that wasn’t all. The 6’7 forward also tipped his hat to the French sensation over his approach to missing out on the Defensive Player of the Year award this year.
“I like him, he’s old school. He’s old school. He getting after it. He wants to win the Defensive Player of the Year. He told Rudy Gobert, I think I heard something he said, ‘This is your last one’. You know?”
“[Victor Wembanyama] wants to wins DPOY”@MettaWorld37 tells @SamMitchellNBA & @RickKamlaSports that Wemby is his top defender in the league. pic.twitter.com/twAMTNkITg
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) September 19, 2024
Metta went on to add, “And I really like that. I can’t wait to see what he does. But if I had to pick one guy, obviously who is a cheat code but I’ll probably pick Wembanyama.”
Being a defensive-minded player for most of his career, World Peace loved Wemby’s hard-nosed approach. Not only was he impressed with Wembanyama’s emphasis on the less glamorous side of the game, but also the way he announced his arrival to Gobert.
Wembanyama’s emphasis on defense
For those of you who are unaware of the context, Gobert won his fourth Defensive Player of the Year award this past season. While Rudy’s numbers were decent, many felt that Wembanyama was robbed of the DPOY honors by the league.
In the 2023-24 NBA season, Gobert averaged 2.1 blocks and 0.7 steals per game. His total came up to 162 blocks and 52 steals. On the other hand, Wemby averaged 3.6 blocks and 1.2 steals per game this past season. The Spurs rookie recorded 254 blocks and 88 steals.
Despite the disparity in season averages, Gobert took home the DPOY honors, resulting in this healthy competition between the two Frenchmen.
Wemby called his shot earlier this season 👽
(via @BasketNews_com) pic.twitter.com/WDTpl9hZQo
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 7, 2024
During an interview with TheRinger, Wemby took on a blooming approach to pushing himself on the defensive end.
“Defense has always been an aspect of the game where I felt comfortable. I’m curious to see it. And I’m waiting to be challenged as well by my coaches, by my teammates, to get new, bigger roles. Maybe being able to guard every position.”
Based on the performance he had this past season, Wembanyama is going to be a scary sight for opposing teams both on the offensive and defensive end, and it is only a matter of time before he lays claim to the DPOY award.
