Like LeBron James during his rookie year, Victor Wembanyama did not make the playoffs for his first NBA season. Like LeBron James, Victor Wembanyama was not an All-Star in his first season. But like LeBron James in his time, Victor Wembanyama wants to climb the ladder, four by four!
“A successful year would be one where we do not waste time making the same mistakes as last year and implement our improvements immediately,” explained the Frenchman. « [Pour l’instant]everything is going well because when I observe everyone – and I observed everyone during the summer – everyone has worked very hard. And it looks like it’s going to pay off.”
Collect trophies to build “a palace”
Spared during the preseason, “Wemby” is coming off an exceptional rookie season. One of the most impressive in history with 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.6 blocks and 1.2 steals on average. All with a title of Rookie Of The Year, a place in the All-Defensive First Team and a second place in the Defensive Player Of The Year rankings. He warns that he wants to win everything!
“It’s the same for all my trophies, whether collective or individual”continues the Spurs pivot. “I love them. I really cherish them. But I want all the trophies I receive today to be building blocks to build something great in the future. You know, a brick by itself is not much. You can get a palace when you accumulate them.”
The rise in power in the 2024 Olympics
Even on the international scene, Victor Wembanyama did not disappoint with an average of 15.8 points and 9.7 rebounds at the Paris Olympic Games. Voted best young person in the competition, he also won a place in the best five of the 2024 Olympics, and of course a silver medal. From the Team USA bench, Erik Spoelstra was impressed by the rise of the Frenchman.
“He has incredible talent and is a determined person” underlines the Heat coach. “We saw it this summer at the Olympics, particularly in France, where the expectations for the team were very high. And it was in the most important moments that he played best, including in our last match. I think it was his best match. But over the last two or three matches, we could see that the trend was upwards when we really needed him to gain momentum. It was impressive. »
For Gregg Popovich, the 2024 Olympics were a plus for Wemby, as for other players before him. It’s up to the Frenchman to convert the try as a leader to bring the Spurs back into the playoffs.
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