In his young NBA career, Victor Wembanyama has already faced off against one of the modern-day GOATs – Kevin Durant – on more than one instance. A very rare feat, Wemby has already led the San Antonio Spurs to clinch both victories against the Phoenix Suns.
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Following the Spurs-Suns 2nd November clash, Kevin Durant made an appearance on HooperVision reacting to the Golden State Warriors-Oklahoma City Thunder. During the same, Quentin Richardson asked KD to talk about his experience contesting the 7ft 4” rookie’s shots.
KD, who is used to being on the other side of the discussion, revealed the struggles that the defender faces when having to contest the French phenom’s shots. With an eight-foot wingspan, it is practically impossible for any defender to block the 19-year-old’s shots. As a result, defenders end up fouling him. Lauding the prodigy following their back-to-back matchups, the Slim Reaper said:
“Yo, when he raised up and shot the ball, I was like there’s no way Imma be close to this. … I’m just gonna play hard and contest, man. You gonna foul him or he’s just gonna make the shot. His misses are all on him. He different, man, he different. He long, athletic, he mobile, he can shoot it, he’s got skills, man.”
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Unlike some other youngsters, Wembanyama didn’t seem as though he felt any pressure playing an important game. In the first game against the Suns, he lodged 18 points and 8 rebounds, only to follow it up with a much better 38-point, 10-rebound double-double.
Averaging 28 points and 9 rebounds against the powerhouse – the Phoenix Suns – of the West is a huge achievement in itself.
Kevin Durant lauds Victor Wembanyama
Victor Wembanyama is the best example of a unicorn – a big man who possesses guard-like skills. However, long before guys like Wemby, Chet Holmgren, and Kristaps Porzingis joined the league, Kevin Durant was considered as the only unicorn. Hence, comparisons between KD and Wemby were going to be made following their clash.
Yes, there are quite some similarities between the two. However, the Durantula made it pretty clear that the San Antonio Spurs youngster was a one-of-a-kind talent.
“I don’t see anybody else in his game. I know we both skinny, and I’m sure he said he watched me growing up, but he’s his own player. I’m sure he watched so many great players in the league and tried to emulate just about everybody — you can tell, in his enthusiasm for the game, you can tell that through the TV and playing against him. So, he’s his own player, person, he’s gonna create his own lane that’s much different than anybody who’s ever played. And you can try to compare, but he’s gonna carve out his own lane,” KD said.
Five games into his rookie season and Victor Wembanyama has already established himself as the best player on Gregg Popovich’s team. During the draft process, the European sensation was being touted as the next biggest thing in basketball. And it might be way too early to say but Wemby has been living up to all the surreal expectations set for him.
Wemby has already impressed the basketball world with his relentless work ethic. The hard work that he puts in has been translating on the court. Apart from leading all rookies in points per game (20.6), the Frenchman is also recording 8 rebounds and more than 2 blocks.
