'I Know It Will Happen!' Spurs Rookie Victor Wembanyama 'Patiently' Waiting for NBA Title
JUNE 15 — A week before his life was set to change for good, Victor Wembanyama experienced something he wasn't used to.
The 2023 NBA Draft — taking place in Brooklyn — was rapidly approaching, but before he could begin to think about it, he had to get through the rest of his season in France for Metropolitans 92, which saw itself in the LNB Pro A Finals against AS Monaco.
And despite averaging 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds and three blocks in each of Metropolitans 92's three finals games, the French phenom and his overseas teammates couldn't quite get the job done, even with his fervent leadership.
"[Last] year was a really special year for me," Wembanyama said of his time with Metropolitans 92. "It was my last year in France, and I was playing for a team that was second place all year. I've never had this amount of responsibility on a basketball court; I had to push a lot of guys up and make them as good as possible."
While his impact was felt — and greatly at that — it still wasn't quite enough. Wembanyama's squad lost 3-0 in sweeping fashion, but while losing wasn't anything new to the him, losing in the Finals was for one reason in particular:
It meant that Wembanyama had fallen short.
San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama playing in a Las Vegas Summer League game against the Charlotte Hornets.
Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports
Short? Victor Wembanyama? Really?
Dating all the way back to when he was growing up being coached by his mother, Wembanyama wasn't short. He was quite the opposite, actually. That's what made him so special. And for a now 7-4 forward-center, that word still doesn't exist in his vocabulary — or at least, not in the literal sense.
But in the metaphorical sense, it does. It has to. And as much as it stung for the 19-year-old to "fall short" of a title in his home country, Wembanyama losing was a necessary step in his journey, which now sees him in a San Antonio Spurs jersey competing for an NBA title in a loaded Western Conference.
The task at hand is difficult ... daunting, even. But Wembanyama isn't the type to feel pressure, and if he does, it's nothing he's admitted to up to this point, which he only further confirmed during an online press conference Monday.
"I don't feel any pressure," Wembanyama said when asked about his lofty goal with the Spurs. "These are stages that are part of the life of a basketball player, [and] when you have such high goals, it's normal [for] there [to be] so much attention, questions and invasive people."
Wembanyama has a point. Not only is he going to be placed under the microscope in his rookie season because of his unique frame and generational talent, he's also going to be held to whatever standards and goals he's set for himself.
And for him, that means winning a ring, though his initial cadence of doing so "as soon as possible" seems to have shifted slightly.
"For the future, the best thing is not knowing what awaits us," he said. "The ideal start would already be the playoffs.
"It's no secret that it's very hard to win a [championship] ring. But I'm patient. I know it will happen at one point or another."
For a rookie expected to restore the Spurs back to their glory days, Wembanyama seems to be handling the pressure extremely well, but then again, that's part of how he wants to set himself apart — even setting a goal of doing well in media pressers.
"I'm just trying to be myself," Wembanyama said. "At the same time, though, I'm trying to learn and be as objective as I can to become the best. I'm not going to let anyone change the way I want to be. [That is] the best way I can become the best version of myself."
Just a week after losing in the LNB Pro A Finals to AS Monaco, Wembanyama's life was changed forever. When NBA commissioner Adam Silver stepped up the the podium to read off the Spurs' first overall pick, Wembanyama knew it was coming. So did the fans and the entire rest of the basketball world.
But it was still special. Especially for the rookie himself.
"Hearing that sentence from Adam Silver," Wembanyama said, in-between tears and beside his siblings on the draft stage. "I've dreamed of it so much. Hearing that, I've just got to cry. ... I've accomplished something I've been dreaming of my whole life."
Wembanyama's dream was realized that evening, and since then, it's been all about how he can put forth his best effort and be his best self for San Antonio. He may not have played a regular season game yet, but he already knows what his goals are and how he plans to achieve them.
No, the Spurs' 7-4 rookie won't ever be classified as short. Not by a long shot. But that doesn't mean he won't fall short again, whether it be during a mid-November matchup or in the NBA Finals down the line.
Regardless, Wembanyama wants to ensure that happens as few times as possible, which might be the most difficult one of his goals to accomplish. But for the rookie, that doesn't matter. Nor does the pressure or the constant attention.
Wembanyama simply wants to play winning basketball. But more importantly, he wants to play Spurs basketball. And for a franchise in big need of a turn-around, that's exactly what it wants to hear from its generational rookie.
Then again, when has Wembanyama not been exactly what San Antonio's hoped for?
