Anonymous scout has bold criticism of Victor Wembanyama

Victor Wembanyama entered the NBA with an (almost) unprecedented amount of fanfare. The San Antonio Spurs selected the French phenom with the first overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft. 

During his rookie season, Wembanyama was impressed with his deep offensive skill set and generational defensive talent. However, to begin his sophomore season, the future All-Star is struggling to find his rhythm on the offensive side of the floor.

Through the Spurs' first nine games, he's averaging 17.7 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 41.3% from the field and 22.6% from three-point range. According to an anonymous scout who spoke with ESPN's Tim Bontemps, Wembanyama looks like he's playing without "direction."

"He's absolutely awesome on defense, and not impactful at all on offense," the scout told ESPN. "He just looks like he's playing without a whole lot of direction."

San Antonio is 4-5 to begin the season. Wembanyama is still learning to play alongside some of his new teammates, including Chris Paul, who is likely taking some offensive touches away from the young star. As such, it's logical to expect Wembanyama to be going through a tough spell on offense. He must figure out where he's at his best while sharing the floor with the future Hall of Fame guard.

Nevertheless, it's too early for Wembanyama to be receiving any form of criticism. He's still doing things people of his size aren't supposed to be capable of doing. He's still arguably the most naturally gifted defensive talent in the NBA. And he is still likely to become a global superstar if he stays injury-free.

The "sophomore slump" is real. Players of all qualities have been forced to navigate a difficult second year. If Wembanyama is still making an impact, then he's doing what's expected of him. It's unnecessary to put so much pressure on his shoulders so early.