Despite being unable to finish the 2024-25 NBA season, Victor Wembanyama had quite the busy summer. The San Antonio Spurs star didn’t let the recovery of a blood clot keep him within a box of four walls. He was constantly doing different activities, with the majority of them centred around improving his on-court performance. However, out of everything he did, only one reigns above the others.
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Victor Wembanyama was on pace to have a historic sophomore season. When healthy, he was the runaway favorite for the Defensive Player of the Year award. Unfortunately, the blood clot in his right arm forced him to forfeit the rest of the season right after the All-Star break. Wemby had only played 46 games, which made him ineligible for any NBA awards.
Remarkably, Wemby still led the league with 3.8 blocks per game and 176 total blocks. Brook Lopez was second with 148 blocks and played 80 games. Thankfully, Wemby didn’t try to rush back and used the time away from basketball to get his body and his mind in order.
One of the Frenchman’s adventures led him to a Shaolin temple in Dengfeng, China. Wemby spent 10 days on the spiritual retreat, eventually returning to the United States significantly more refined than before. That cleanse allowed him to be able to endure the tumultuous training from legends such as Kevin Garnett and Hakeem Olajuwon.
However, none of those moments are among Wembanyama’s most memorable side missions this past summer. During his media availability at the Spurs’ media day, Wemby shed light on the outing that stood out the most.
“Victor Wembanyama says his favorite moment this summer was going to Houston and visiting NASA,” said Jeff Garcia of KENS 5.
It isn’t a secret that Wembanyama doesn’t have the usual interests of a typical 21-year-old. The 7-foot-3 big man loves to read and learn, which explains why his visit to the Johnson Space Center was so memorable. There, he took a ride on a Mars Rover, as well as had a call with astronauts on board the ISS.
We’ve seen in many instances that fans criticize players for not working as hard as they could on their game during the offseason. Wemby doesn’t have time to entertain those comments. He proceeded to provide an introspective way of thinking about life as an athlete.
“Victor Wembanyama says life isn’t forever, you’ll miss things in life. But he wants to experience as much as he can, and that playing in the NBA won’t slow him down from doing things he likes,” said Garcia.
Wemby may be prioritizing other aspects of his life, but not over basketball. Just by looking at the Spurs star, it was clear he was in the gym throughout the summer. Wemby revealed that he “added muscle mass, and that he feels better and stronger.” If that wasn’t enough, he made a promise to any other doubters.
“I can assure you no one has trained like I have this summer… I’m so much under control, and my conditioning is better. What I have done this summer is world-class,” Wembanyama said.
If Wemby returns even better than before, it would be a scary sight for the rest of the league. That’s exactly what the Spurs are hoping for as they look to take on a highly competitive Western Conference.
