Victor Wembanyama's NYC chess stunt a genius marketing ploy

Many New Yorkers braved the cold — on a Saturday morning, no less — to join Wemby for a chess game. The event caught the attention of curious pedestrians, who stopped by and captured it on their mobile devices as it unfolded. The NBA's X account also actively shared videos of random fans playing chess with one of the biggest basketball stars in the world. 

Wemby later floated the idea of a chess tournament for NBA players, with the proceeds from the event going to a charitable cause. 

On the surface, the event paints the Frenchman as a humble young man willing to interact and spend time with random strangers. And while that may well be true, the event was also a genius initiative to market the NBA and Wembanyama as the future face of the league. 

It also furthered the brand of Wemby as a man of the people and shed the stereotype of athletes, especially 7-footers, lacking skills beyond their physical gifts — considering the smarts needed to excel in chess. In other words, nobody can ever accuse Wemby of being a stupid, tall jock. 

Wemby is already one of the NBA's top merchandise sellers, most viewed on social media/YouTube and a proven television ratings draw. The Spurs versus Knicks game on Dec. 25 was the most-watched Christmas Day opener in 13 years. His "Aliens are real" Nike ad is also one of the most successful campaigns by the sneaker giant.

The Spurs star has the makings of becoming a worldwide phenomenon in the vein of Michael Jordan, LeBron James or Kobe Bryant.