The San Antonio Spurs weren’t supposed to have Victor Wembanyama. They were one of three teams with a 14% chance to land the first pick, but they finished the prior season with the third-worst record in the league. The Detroit Pistons had the worst record, and the Houston Rockets were the second-worst team in the league.
Prior to the change that flattened the lottery odds, the Pistons would have been the overwhelming favorites to land Wembanyama. Based on the previous year’s standings, they should have had the rookie Frenchman. He could have been playing alongside Cade Cunningham, perhaps helping them prevent the longest losing streak in NBA history.
After the Spurs’ Wednesday night win over the Detroit Pistons, Wembanyama pondered the alternate future that would have seen him land in the Motor City.
“I studied every team in the lottery, even the ones with 0.5 percent chance to get [the] No. 1 pick,” Wembanyama said via James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. “I didn’t know any secrets [about the Pistons], probably just as much as a Pistons fan. I didn’t think about [if I could have been on the Pistons]. I had other things to worry about. It would be weird to imagine what a different future could be.”
Wembanyama led the Spurs to a win over the Pistons on Wednesday, posting a 16-point, 12-rebound, 10-assist triple-double – the first of his career and the second-fastest in NBA history, as he only played 21:02.
Neither the Spurs nor the Pistons have played well this season, but only one of them has Wembanyama.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3]