Victor Wembanyama closes NBA preseason with another ludicrous performance, starting with tip-off vs. Stephen Curry
It might only be NBA preseason, but Victor Wembanyama has spent the time submitting his résumé as the most fun player to watch in basketball.
In case you need a recap, here is Game 1, Game 2 and Game 3, all comically entertaining nights starring a 7-foot-4 19-year-old with the skills and instincts of a veteran guard. The San Antonio Spurs rookie finished his preseason with another showcase Friday, this time against the full-strength Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors at least had some fun with the challenge in front of them, sending the 6-foot-2 Stephen Curry for the opening tip-off.
Welcome to preseason.
Wemby vs. Steph on the tip-off 😭
(via @NBCSWarriors)
pic.twitter.com/C5b7tfBYpx— Ball Don’t Lie (@Balldontlie) October 21, 2023
We could throw out all the absurd stuff Wembanyama did in the ensuing hours, such as blocking Klay Thompson at the 3-point line and draining a 3-pointer at the other end. Or soaring from the edge of the paint for a two-handed dunk. Or putting Andrew Wiggins in the seventh circle of hell.
What stood out most, though, was how frequently Wembanyama's long hands found their way into the flow of the game, like in this 90-second stretch that saw him drain a long 2-pointer, score an and-1 from the baseline, block Thompson, shoot the 3-pointer, block Wiggins and make another 3-pointer.
Wemby did all this in 90 seconds 👽 pic.twitter.com/LwKec8Nc4j
— Brett Usher (@UsherNBA) October 21, 2023
Wembanyama finished the games with 19 points on 8-of-19 shooting (2-of-7 from deep) with four rebounds and five blocks in 21 minutes in a 122-117 Spurs win.
We're at the point where Wembanyama can basically be considered an early-career Shohei Ohtani in that he presents a physical package never before seen in league history, with questions of 1) whether he can stay healthy and 2) if the laws of physics really are that flexible.
Ohtani turned out to be the real deal, but with significant injury issues. We can only hope Wembanyama is the former without the latter. Either way, we're going to want to watch it all go down.
The Spurs are scheduled to open their regular season Wednesday against the Dallas Mavericks.