Spurs insider shuts down ESPN's odd Victor Wembanyama pot-stirring

Andrews said that she gave Wembanyama, "a year, max," before he got impatient about losing in San Antonio. It's remarkably fast, even for NBA media, to start suggesting trade rumors for a player who is 61 games into his NBA career. Perhaps Shelburne, a Los Angeles Lakers insider, is simply used to every star player in the league being linked to the Purple and Gold, regardless of the outward signs.

It's also unusual timing for this speculation, after the Spurs won consecutive games against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are second in the Western Conference, and the playoff-bound Indiana Pacers.

Mike Finger of the San Antonio Express News strongly disagreed with the ESPN talking heads' premise.

Finger said Wembanyama was "forward-thinking" and "relentlessly patient" about the Spurs' long-term plan. As he should be. San Antonio has amassed five extra first-round picks and as many as a dozen extra second-round picks in the next seven drafts, plus three potential first-round swaps. That's a huge amount of draft capital that can be used to surround Wembanyama with inexpensive young players, who are on his developmental timeline.

Wembanyama is the most highly touted prospect since LeBron James, whose early career should be a cautionary tale for the Spurs. Worried about losing James if they didn't win quickly enough, the Cleveland Cavaliers displayed very little patience with their roster. In King James' first two seasons, the Cavaliers traded two future first-rounders and three second-rounders, mainly dealing young players for lackluster veterans like Eric Snow and Jeff McInnis.

In one disheartening move, the Cavs traded a first-round pick for Jiri Welsch, only to trade him for a second-round pick four months later. Welsch played 16 games for the Cavs. They also gave big-money free-agent deals to non-stars Larry Hughes and Donyell Marshall. Ultimately, they were left with a serious lack of young talent, and eventually lost James to the Miami Heat in 2010.

Wembanyama isn't going anywhere. He's in his first NBA season, and he's so talented that it's impossible to imagine constructing a fair trade for him. If Rudy Gobert was traded for five first-round picks and a pick swap, what would Wemby be worth? Fifteen first-round picks and 10 swaps? Even then, you'd be acquiring the picks in hopes of getting a player nearly as good as Wembanyama.

It's also a sign of how the NBA's broadcast partners can sabotage the league. Instead of celebrating the French big man's incredible accomplishments, ESPN is manufacturing a story about Wembanyama's hypothetical unhappiness. It's a troubling trend of focusing on rumors and transactions rather than the actual play on the court.

At least Spurs fans can't complain that the national media is ignoring them anymore. Be careful what you wish for, San Antonio. you just might get it.