San Antonio Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama is having one of the best rookie seasons in NBA history. The first overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft is certainly living up to the hype in the early going, exceeding even the lofty expectations that were placed on him out of the gates.
The Spurs aren’t having a great season with a record of 12-48, but Wembanyama is giving them optimism for the future. Despite being only 54 games into his career, he is proving to be a difference-maker on both ends of the court.
On the season, Wembanyama is averaging 20.7 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.3 steals and 3.3 blocks. He is putting up those numbers in only 28.7 minutes per game as San Antonio has had him on a minutes restriction throughout the season.
Despite not playing as many minutes as he is likely capable of, Wembanyama is leading the NBA in blocks. He provides highlights on a nightly basis, doing things on the court we have never seen before.
A player standing 7’4” and being able to handle the ball in the manner Wembanyama does is truly astonishing. He is already capable of scoring at every level on offense, as he is dominant near the rim and can shoot over any opponent in the mid-range or from 3-point range.
Slowing him down is virtually impossible, as he has a counter to everything opponents throw at him. Arguably the most unique part of his game is how good of a shooter he is from long-range at this point in his career.
Wembanyama’s 32.7 percent from 3-point range is below league average, but he is elite in one category of long-range shooting; off the dribble. Oddly enough, Wembanyama struggles when spotting up. When he can shoot off the dribble, he has knocked down 45.6 percent of his attempts in 2024, per NBA University on X.
As the stats show, it is on pretty good volume, too. Wembanyama has a distinct advantage with his length being able to shoot over opponents, but him shooting a better percentage off the dribble than spotting up is mind-blowing.
Rarely are players that efficient off the dribble as rookies, let alone at any point in their NBA careers, especially for someone his size. Even with the NBA transitioning more to positionless basketball with an emphasis on perimeter play, centers aren’t supposed to be doing what Wembanyama is accomplishing.
Just how impressive is the shooting display he is putting on? An argument could be made that he is the best shooting big man currently in the NBA, as he is lapping the field compared to his big men peers in attempting and making more off-the-dribble 3-pointers.
Wembanyama is quite literally in a league of his own when it comes to shooters of at least 7 feet tall. Only scratching the surface of his potential, the old adage of the sky’s the limit may not even do Wembanyama justice at this point.
Already possessing an advanced offensive arsenal, Wembanyama is only going to get better as he adapts to the NBA game even more. Once he can figure out his spot-up shooting, we could be looking at the most well-rounded, dominant offensive force in the league.
More must-reads: