BROOKLYN, N.Y. — "With the first pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the San Antonio Spurs select... Victor Wembanyama."
When NBA Commissioner Adam Silver spoke those words at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Thursday night, a thrilling new era of basketball officially began in San Antonio.
Like everyone else Wembanyama knew his name would be called first, but he was still overcome with emotion in the moment.
"I'm a damn Spur," he said, surrounded by his siblings. "Hearing that sentence from Adam Silver... I've dreamed of this so much. I gotta cry."
Unofficially the Wemby Era in San Antonio started on the night of the draft lottery, when a 14% chance of getting the top pick came through for the Spurs and sent the Alamo City into a frenzy. There was pure jubilation for the team and the fans, and there was no serious conversation about what they would do with the pick.
Victor Wembanyama was the consensus No. 1 pick in this draft long before the Spurs won the right to select him. Most talent evaluators believe he's the best NBA draft prospect since LeBron James 20 years ago. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski went so far as to call him "maybe the greatest prospect in the history of team sports."
As sensationalized as that may sound, it isn't so far-fetched. The 19-year-old Frenchman possesses a combination of size, skill, and fluidity that simply never has been seen before. He's 7'5" with an 8-foot wingspan, and he moves like a guard.
Wemby grew up doing Pistol Pete ballhandling drills, taking the ball up the court like a point guard, and shooting from wherever. He can shoot off the dribble, even on a stepback, even one-legged runners from three-point range. He's an unselfish passer with fantastic feel for the game, and despite his slight frame, he's been able to find success in the post against grown men in the French league.
Heading to the NBA, he made clear that he wants to win it all as soon as he can.
Every single game, he makes a handful of plays that simply aren't possible for anybody else. The season was full of them, but one sticks in the mind as the prime example of his otherworldly ability.
Wembanyama's Metropolitans 92 team was facing off against Monaco, one of the best teams in all of Europe. Wemby isolated at the top of the arc, driving right before crossing over between his legs and hesitating with the ball in his left hand. He got low, quickly threw it between his legs and then back into the left, then jabbed in and stepped back for a three.
It was a dazzling display of skill for a player that big, but the defender stuck with him. He couldn't really contest the jumper due to Wemby's sheer size, but the shot missed off the front iron. All that did was allow the gigantic teenager to soar in for an insane put-back slam. His right hand came off the rim just before his right foot landed on the ground.
Wembanyama is equally menacing on the defensive end of the floor. His size allows him to block and otherwise deter shots at the rim, but again, he's much more than just a big man. His length and footspeed allow him to cover more ground than 99% of area rugs. He can switch onto guards on the perimeter and either stay in front or recover from behind.
He's been on NBA radars for years, and at 19 he earned a ton of LNB Pro A League awards. He was MVP and Defensive Player of the Year after leading the league in scoring and blocked shots.
Wemby averaged 21.5 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.0 blocks, and 2.4 assists in 32.1 minutes per game while shooting 47% from the floor, 27.5% from three, and 83% from the free throw line. Perhaps most importantly, he played in every game and led Mets 92 on a surprising run to the Finals, where they fell to Monaco.
In a pair of games near Las Vegas against the G League Ignite, Wemby showed what he can do under NBA rules that favor more spacing and less physical defense. He put up 37 points, seven triples and five blocks in the first game, then had 36 the next game. The dominant performances in front of NBA talent evaluators cemented him as the number one pick. Many others would have shut it down then, but he played every game of Mets 92's season.
Wembanyama grew up just outside of Versailles in France, where former Spurs Tony Parker and Boris Diaw are national heroes. There's a picture of a young Victor in Parker's jersey, and he later went on to play for the ASVEL team Parker owns as well as the Mets 92 team that Boris Diaw is the general manager of.
Wemby called Ray Allen's 2013 dagger 'the villain shot' and seemed to celebrate on lotto night when he realized he wouldn't be going to the Houston Rockets. The alien superstar grew up on Spurs basketball, and now he's heading to San Antonio to represent a nation full of Spurs fans.
"When the Spurs got the No. 1 pick, I was just thinking that I was feeling lucky that they got the pick as a franchise that has that culture... that experience in winning. Making and creating good players. I really can't wait," he said before the draft.
On draft night, he said he was already feeling the love.
“I’ve felt so much love towards me by the Spurs fans ever since May 16. I think there's murals of me in the city of San Antonio," he said. "This is so incredible… I could not ask for a better welcome than this. I really love the fanbase man.”
Wemby said he's interested in learning Spanish, and without being asked said he was excited for breakfast tacos. Though when our Nate Ryan asked him what he'd put on his breakfast taco, it became clear that the concept is a bit alien to him.
Victor: "I don't know much about breakfast tacos but let me try. What meat do you use, beef?"
Nate: "You can put whatever you want on it."
Victor: "Chicken then. What's the name... tortilla."
Nate: "Flour or corn?"
Victor: "... corn? Some lettuce, some cheese, some sour cream- tell me if I'm wrong, sour cream, and some pepper, some red pepper."
It's ok, he'll learn.
Off the court, the 19-year-old is clearly wise beyond his years. JJ Redick hosted him on his podcast Old Man and the Three, and the kid started talking like an 18th-century philosopher.
"I don't feel any pressure on my shoulders, and I think the reason is because I try to live free, sort of be a free man at all times. And the way I play is just the way I truly want to play, and have wanted to play for my whole life. This is me, and I'm trying to show my true personality on the court, and just be myself," he said. "I know what I want. I'm driven from the inside of my heart, and nothing can put me out of my path. I do everything I can, so I deserve what I get."
Redick wondered how someone in his position doesn't lose touch with reality, and brought up the movie Inception. He asked what Victor's totem is, the thing that keeps him grounded.
"My totem is something bigger than basketball. It's accomplishing yourself inside this universe. When I need motivation, when I need energy and I feel tired, when I need to fight on the court and it's hard, I always remember: I'm free in that universe, I do whatever I can, and I know what I want to do, and nothing's gonna stop me from doing it. I've always got that in my mind, and it's not just about basketball, it's about life.
Redick was left stunned.
"F**k man... he's reached enlightenment," Redick said. "I wish I was free in the universe."
"You are," Wembanyama responded without missing a beat.
It sure seems like Wembanyama will be a culture fit in San Antonio. He'll start his career with arguably the best coach in basketball history in Gregg Popovich, and the legendary Tim Duncan will be around the brand-new practice facility to help mentor the kid like he's done for all of San Antonio's young players since his playing days ended.
Speaking of which, San Antonio has built a solid young core that can support Wembanyama and grow with him. Keldon Johnson, Devin Vassell and Jeremy Sochan are poised for a big year on the wings, and Zach Collins is healthy and ready to play center if Wemby is a better fit at power forward. Tre Jones will likely be back, and Malaki Branham looks ready to break out in his second year. Blake Wesley is another first-round pick from last year worth watching.
On top of that the Spurs have plenty of cap space to add players via trades or free agency, and two dozen draft assets through 2029. That opens up a ton of options for building around Wembanyama, who said on lottery night that he wants to win a championship as soon as possible.
With the first round coming to an end, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Spurs had traded the 33rd pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves for two future second-round picks.
They used the 44th pick to select another Frenchman, Sidy Cissoko who played for G League Ignite alongside Scoot Henderson last season. The 19-year-old is about 6'7" with a 6'10" wingspan, and he weighed in at 224 pounds at the NBA combine.
He has the length and strength necessary to compete on the wing in the NBA, and with that he brings an intriguing and versatile skillset on both ends of the floor. He shot a little over 30% from three last season, and he played a lot of point guard when he was younger which shows in some of his playmaking and passing creativity.
Cissoko still needs to tighten up his handle a bit and develop a more consistent outside jumper and in-between game, but when he can attack off the catch as a secondary playmaker he shows exciting flashes of potential. A few dribbles is all he needs to create or exploit a lane. He can change speeds quickly and burst past his man, and if he sees even the slimmest gap between defenders he'll find a way to slither through it and get to the rim. When he does you might see a poster dunk or a no-look dime to a big man underneath.
He played up and down the lineup for Ignite, with the ability to switch multiple positions on defense. Many had a first-round grade on him coming into the draft, and Spurs GM Brian Wright said they were thrilled when he fell to them at 44.
Don't expect him to crack the rotation right away, but Cissoko has the potential to develop into a contributor for San Antonio.