Potential No. 1 pick in 2023 Victor Wembanyama dazzled on the court on Tuesday and earned quite a bit of praise from the basketball world, including LeBron James.
Wembanyama of Metropolitans 92 produced a game-high 37 points, five blocked shots and four rebounds versus Scoot Henderson and the NBA G League Ignite. He went 7-of-11 from 3-point range in 32 minutes of work in the loss.
The 7-foot-4 center shined on offense, from hitting stepback 3s to flashing his footwork in the post and running as the point guard. On the other end, Wembanyama put his 8-foot wingspan to work and altered plenty of shots from the competition.
James was among those that were impressed by his performance.
Everybody has been a unicorn over the last few years, but he’s more like an alien. No one has ever seen anyone as tall as he is but as fluid and as graceful as he is out on the floor. At (his size), his ability to put the ball on the floor, shoot stepback jumpers out of the post, stepback 3s, catch-and-shoot 3s and block shots. He’s for sure a generational talent. Hopefully, he continues to stay healthy. You can tell he loves the game. He was smiling a lot.
The display by Wembanyama further demonstrated the lengths some teams may go to in order to have the opportunity to draft him next year. Some team executives reportedly believe he should sit out for the rest of the year as he is believed to already be a lock as the top pick.
He is considered to be perhaps the top draft prospect since James.
Wembanyama is drawing monstrous expectations given his talent and size, and it is something that is heightened each time he steps onto the court. James once dealt with the same hype, but not in the social media era. It is something he is thankful for.
I just thank God I didn’t have social media. That’s all I can say. I can’t imagine how my life would have been different or what would have transpired with me with social media but I’m happy I didn’t have social media and I’m happy I was from a small town of Akron, Ohio. It definitely kept me in a bunker and kept me locked in on the task at hand.
All eyes will be on Wembanyama and Henderson throughout the upcoming season. The two players headline a draft class that is expected to be deep and talent evaluators will be curious to see how they handle the pressure and expectations that come with being the top picks.
They seem to be more than ready for the challenge.
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