What Should Be Expected Of Rookie Victor Wembanyama?

It’s been multiple years since Victor Wembanyama was first touted as arguably the best NBA prospect in decades. His physical attributes, headlined by his 7-foot-4 stature and 8-foot wingspan, not only warp minds but the dimensions of the court as well. His flashes of ball-handling and shot-making combined with teleportation-like movement skills give the Spurs sensation an unfathomable amount of potential on both ends of the court.

However, the greatest players in the sports’ history have started their career on a variety of different notes. Some came storming right out of the gate as top players like Tim Duncan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Others came out with frequent superstar flashes as they rounded out their games, á la LeBron James and Michael Jordan.

In recent seasons, we’ve witnessed spectacular rookie campaigns, but none have stepped in and immediately become All-NBA caliber players. On the other hand, in recent seasons we haven’t seen a prospect quite like Wembanyama. So, what should we really expect of the 19-year-old in year one?

Offensively, Wembanyama’s game will likely be a work in progress early on. While he possesses a once-in-a-lifetime toolbox, not everything has been sharpened, nor does he yet know which tools to rely on most frequently.

At this point, he isn’t refined enough as a shot-maker to lean on that aspect of the game. The Frenchman hasn’t yet found his spots on the floor, nor key in on any NBA-level go-to moves. Additionally, he still doesn’t quite have the brute strength to physically impose his will when attacking the basket.

All that being said, Wembanyama will still find ways to rack up points. He’ll feast off of putbacks, finish plays off of feeds, and get out in transition to accumulate easy buckets. Also, just by virtue of being able to move on a different level than everyone else, he’ll leave some defenders looking silly. And then when he channels the correct process, his skillset will be unstoppable in certain stretches.

Wembanyama has a lot of fine-tuning to do before he can get buckets at the level of the league’s best, but he should still be able to approach 20 points per game as he enters the pros. On top of that, his passing should be useful as well.

Defensively, Wembanyama’s impact will immediately translate a lot better than on the other end of the ball. His pattern recognition and instincts are still being developed, but his sheer physical ability will instantly wipe away mistakes. He takes ground coverage and rim protection to a whole different level, while also truly maintaining the foot speed to hold his own against ball handlers on switches.

We could expect Wembanyama to begin to bring Defensive Player Of The Year type impact not long after his debut game. Overall, he likely won’t be an All-NBA level player this early in his career, but his rookie season should still be incredible and a pleasure to watch.

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