The French prodigy Victor Wembanyama, after the nerves he showed on Friday in his first preseason game with the San Antonio Spurs jersey, shone this Sunday with 27 points and 12 rebounds in an NBA Summer League game that was led the Portland Trail Blazers (85-80).
Chosen number one in the draft and considered the most promising rookie in the NBA since LeBron James landed in the elite 20 years ago, Wembanyama made his debut on Friday in a friendly against the Charlotte Hornets with 9 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 5 caps.
In that debut he was seen at times rushed and out of place, especially in shooting with a gray 2 of 13 (1 of 6 in triples). “Honestly, I didn’t really know what I was doing on the pitch tonight but I’ll try to learn for the next game,” he admitted at a news conference on Friday.
Wembanyama, 19, clearly improved this Sunday with a solid 9 of 14 shooting (2 of 4 on 3-pointers) and 7 of 12 from the personal line. He also added three blocks and a steal (against three turnovers) and four of his 12 rebounds were offensive.
Wembanyama could not measure himself this Sunday with the number 3 of the last draft, Scoot Henderson, since the young man from the Blazers has a shoulder injury.
Standing 2.22 meters tall with bare feet, Wembanyama has left details of his exceptional physical qualities and his extraordinary talent in these two pre-season games, such as his impressive skill in handling the ball for a center of his size and his facility to intimidate opponents and capture rebounds with a wingspan that exceeds 2.40.
