Victor Wembanyama is doing incredibly well in his rookie NBA season. The fact that he’s openly being advertised by a division rival to become the DPOY in his first full NBA campaign is a testament to the work he’s been doing on the court for the San Antonio Spurs.
However, since the Spurs aren’t going to be playing in the playoffs this season, it’s reasonable for Wemby to look forward to the future. In fact, he’s already considering the Olympics which will happen in his home country of France.
He even made a bold declaration that his country has a good chance of winning gold.
San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama thinks France have a great shot at winning gold
Sportscasting published a piece that discussed Wembanyama’s thoughts on the French national team. Based on the answers he gave L’Equipe, it was evident that he’s raring to play for France.
He shared his thoughts about playing Japan and 2023 champions Germany in the group stage of the competition:
“We’ve got a potentially tricky group, even if it looks interesting and affordable for us. What about the USA? Playing a team in the group stage or in the semi-finals is the same thing. The fact that they’re coming in full strength is the best thing for me. I’d rather play the best team from each country than just two or three of them.”
He was also candid about playing with Minnesota Timberwolves star Rudy Gobert:
“Of course I’m thinking about it, and I’m already talking about it with the players and those in charge of the French team. It’s going to be something new and rarely seen with two profiles like that on the court at the same time. There’s a lot of research to be done on the part of the coaches and ourselves to see how we can make this association work.”
Finally, he set realistic expectations when it came to whether not winning the gold is a failure for Les Bleus:
“I’d consider it a failure if I thought we could have done better. At the same time, I think the gold medal is very attainable if we play in such a way as not to have any regrets.”
Victor Wembanyama has been great for the Spurs this season. His 20.7 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 3.5 APG, and 3.5 BPG should easily get him Rookie of the Year honors.
He would probably love it if he added Olympic gold medalist to his list of personal accolades, too.
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