Welcomed like a rock star in the United States, Victor Wembanyama did not wait for Thursday, and the Draft, to gauge his popularity. On Tuesday alone, he was on the Yankees field for the first pitch of the game against the Mariners. The future Spurs player was also a guest of JJ Redick and his podcast The Old Man and the Three. This Wednesday, we will find him in “Good Morning America”, the ABC morning followed by millions of Americans.
With each speech, Wembanyama impresses with his maturity, and Redick was left speechless! Like when he asked her if being considered a ” generational talent »maybe “the greatest prospect in history, all sports combined”. Is that kind of compliment “goes in one ear, and it comes out the other? »
“Exactly, I don’t feel any pressure” replies “Wemby”. “I don’t feel any pressure because it’s not like it’s a reward. »
Redick acknowledges that it’s very “rare” for a 19-year-old to answer that, and he takes him on board in Christopher Nolan’s film Inception. Wembanyama has seen the film, and Redick then asks him what his “totem” is. “We have seen many young people who have lost their sense of reality and they have lost the very foundations of their principles of life” believes Redick. “What is your totem? »
“I’m never going to lose my sense of reality, and do bullshit. Simply because I know what I want”
Here is Wembanyama’s answer.
“You know, you just talked about young players, and that’s something I think about a lot. There are reasons for that… I know, personally, that I will never become like that. I’m never going to lose my sense of reality, and do bullshit. Simply because I know what I want. I am guided from deep within and nothing can deviate me from my path. I will do whatever I can do, and I deserve what I get. What I believe is that some players are very talented physically or technically. But really very talented, but their head is not level with their body… They get results, they win titles, they get drafted… But in the end, they don’t really deserve what is happening to them…”
Wembanyama feels “free in the universe”
Redick insists, “What is your totem? »
“My totem is bigger than basketball. It’s just life! It is a question of fulfilling oneself in this universe. When I need motivation, when I need energy, when I feel tired, when I need to fight on the pitch, and it’s hard to always remember, I say that I am free in this universe. I can do whatever I want. And I know what I want to do, nothing can stop me. I always have that in mind, and it doesn’t stop at basketball. It is life itself. »
Redick looks at his acolytes: “He has reached the light! »
