Victor Wembanyama lived up to his billing in his debut season. He won the Rookie of the Year award, was included in the All-Rookie First Team, and All-Defensive First Team, and led the league in blocks. He also finished second in the Defensive Player of the Year race. He delivered a slew of memorable performances, but for Brian Windhorst, his incredible duel against Jalen Brunson stood out.
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On the latest episode of Brian Windhorst and The Hoop Collective, the league insider had a segment dedicated to Wembanyama’s rookie season. In it, he reminisced about Frenchman’s exceptional performance in the Spurs’ overtime thriller against the Knicks. He said,
“One of the most memorable nights of the last year for me wasn’t a playoff game, wasn’t an Olympic game…it was the night where…Brunson had 60 and Victor went for 40 and 20 and the Spurs won.”
In that 140-136 win for the Spurs, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson scored a career-high 61 points, dished six rebounds, and grabbed four rebounds. However, it wasn’t enough due to Wembanyama’s historic outing. He finished the game with 40 points, 20 rebounds, and seven assists, and became the first rookie to record a 40-20 game.
Windhorst also marveled at the young center’s quick development. He noted that in the last 10 games of the season, the 20-year-old looked more polished than at the start of the year. Wembanyama averaged 26 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 6.1 assists to end any debate about who the Rookie of the Year was.
Windhorst claimed that the stunning run at the tail end of his debut season and his performance in the Paris Olympics were signs of things to come. The insider isn’t the only one who warned the league about Wembanyama.
DeMar DeRozan predicts Victor Wembanyama will be a problem next season
During an appearance on the Club 520 Podcast, DeMar DeRozan claimed that young star and Spurs head coach Greg Popovich are about to take the NBA by storm. He said,
“The way [Wembanyama] played in the [Olmypics] championship game… He is still a kid, bro! But I guarantee you he was on the phone with Pop [Gregg Popovich] that night… I mean Pop giving him some type of insight or knowledge on how to carry that. Now watch how he be this year!”
The Spurs haven’t been in the playoffs in the last five seasons. Before this dry spell, they had missed the postseason only thrice in their history. Many have questioned whether Popovich is to blame for the franchise’s recent failures.
However, with Wembanyama by his side, he finally has a player in the same mold as Tim Duncan, who can lead the team while the rest follow suit. The veteran head coach couldn’t have asked for a better prospect to build his team around.
It remains to be seen whether the duo can end the Spurs’ uncharacteristically long wait for a playoff appearance in their second season together.
