Too often pronounced at all costs in recent years during the annual periods of the pre-Draft process, the term “generational talent”, twenty years after the arrival of LeBron James in the NBA, has found its perfect incarnation in the person of Victor Wembanyama ?
The most anticipated “prospect” since “King James” in 2003, the 19-year-old French interior is a unique prodigy, a player with a profile never seen before that Spurs won the right to select on June 22 in first position, 26 years after Tim Duncan, and of course 22 years after the most legendary Frenchman in Texas, Tony Parker.
Rising in power, in Nanterre his training club, Asvel last year then especially Boulogne-Levallois this season, Victor Wembanyama is already a star on the NBA planet even before having set foot there, at least in terms of concerns the “hype” and the excessive expectations that surround it. The good news is that his talent and his potential are only matched by these expectations, that his head is very well made and that he is well surrounded.
The NBA is preparing to welcome a potential “game changer”, a future “franchise player” capable of transforming a franchise for the next ten seasons, and he is French. A good reason to smile.
Profile
Job : Power forward or Pivot
Size : 2m24
Weight : 96kg
Crew : Boulogne-Levallois Mets 92
2022/23 stats (regular season): 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 3 blocks.
Strong points
– Limitless defensive volume. Among the (very) many qualities of Victor Wembanyama, the most impressive of all is undoubtedly his defensive presence. This season in Betclic Elite, he shot 3 blocks per game, and that’s obviously not counting the countless number of shots he hindered by his simple vertical deterrence. But if his height (2m24) obviously helps, it is his mobility and his sense of timing that are the essence of his defensive volume which has no concrete limit. Lively on his support and very agile, he covers large spaces in the paint, and can protect the circle vertically in all dispositions: in “drop” on the “pick-and-roll” (even if his lateral speed remains to be worked on ), in the second curtain when he comes to the aid of the weak side to “tag” the player who rolls, or quite simply in one-on-one when a player tries to overtake him on a “drive”. All while committing only two fouls per game! But his defensive volume is not just about protecting the circle: “Wemby” has also shown an ability to get out wide, on the “closeout” in particular by considerably hindering opposing shots with his huge segments, or behind a ” switch” by neutralizing the one-on-one.
– A remarkable size/fluidity/mobility combo. Innate, Victor Wembanyama’s ability to move like a winger in a pivot body is absolutely fascinating, and makes him a physical, technical and athletic phenomenon that the basketball world has surely never known before. Large, mobile, fluid, agile and technical: the native of Nanterre is the complete “package”, the ultimate unicorn whose existence only seemed possible on the NBA 2K video game. The tools to become a very, very big are there, at “Wemby”. All you have to do is, as they say…
– The shot. From all areas of the field, and in all dispositions, Victor Wembanyama knows how to shoot. Its shooting mechanics are fluid, fire fast and very high. His favorite shot pattern this season? The two-point shots out of the dribble, an exercise in which he shot more than 42%. His “handle” already polished allowing him to establish himself, at only 19 years old, as an NBA caliber “shotmaker”, with his size and his “skillset”. At three-pointers, he is less successful in this same exercise, and this drops his overall success percentage when leaving the dribble (31%). In “catch-and-shoot” behind the arc, “Wemby” is turning 33% this season, most often in a “pick-and-pop” pattern, including almost 37% on shots considered “open” . Finally, we also note a great ease at mid-distance (44%), both “face-up” and with his back to the basket when turning around, even if he has finally turned to this type of shot quite rarely this season. (less than 90 shots to date). In the NBA, knowing that he will very often be mobilized on the “pick-and-roll”, we can easily imagine him taking shots at the “mid-range” with greater frequency. In short, Victor Wembanyama is currently able to shoot from anywhere, with more or less success depending on the type of shot, of course. As his shot selection hones with experience, his attacking potential will only increase tenfold…
Weak points
– Resistance and physical power. Very tall and still quite frail physically, Victor Wembanyama faces a complex situation: on the one hand, his game relies on his mobility and agility, and he must therefore above all not favor muscle strengthening to the detriment of this mobility and agility. But on the other hand, while he does not yet exceed 100kg, it is hard to imagine him being able to compete physically with certain pivots in the league. The French prodigy will be jostled in the racket in his debut, and must therefore find a happy medium. That is to say, to strengthen physically, to gain power, without sacrificing speed and mobility. A good ten extra kilos would not be too much, both to better hold the shock in the paint in defense and on the rebound, but also to impose himself more serenely when he finishes near the circle, at the low post in particular, where he is still a little technically imprecise at the moment, as he lacks power and options in his offensive palette.
– Still a bit far of the circle. This is the continuity of what we have just mentioned: one of Victor Wembanyama’s rare faults to date is his difficulty in finishing near the circle, except for dunks or converted lobs on “alley-oop”. This is explained above all by shortcomings in physical power (which can be erased), as we have just underlined, but also by technical limits (which are also erased): while he loves (and excels) in When shooting at mid-range or wide, “Wemby” is on the other hand more timid when he approaches the circle. His arsenal actually still lacks a small range of “hook shots” or back-to-basket movements that would make him even more dangerous. Nothing to worry about either, given the boy’s immense potential. As he gets stronger physically and more confident around the circle, his technical qualities at this distance will also undoubtedly increase.
Comparison
Comparable to… no one? A “prospect” whose size/mobility/fluidity/”skills” combination is unique.
Prognosis
First at Spursobviously.
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