Official Victor Wembanyama NBA Debut Game Thread

[RRR3]

https://a.espncdn.com/photo/2023/1004/r1233868_1296x729_16-9.jpg




The most hyped prospect since LeBron James plays his first NBA game tonight. And if you’ve seen his highlight reel you know it’s warranted.

[SaltyMeatballs]

Alright boys. What is he dropping tonight?

I'm guessing 19/8 and 3 blocks

[Im Still Ballin]

19 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks.

[fourkicks44]

Am I the only one expecting an injury tonight?

[SaltyMeatballs]

Am I the only one expecting an injury tonight?

Chill breh

[elementally morale]

23 points, 5 rebounds, 5 blocks

[highwhey]

Am I the only one expecting an injury tonight?

i hope not, i have tickets to watch him on tuesday

[TheGreatDeraj]

Future goat with 30/15/5/5/5

[elementally morale]

I hope he won't take more than 4 three pointers. He should play like a big against Dallas. If he isn't nervous the points should be there as well as the blocks. He may block a Luka three or something like that. It's the rebounds I'm a bit concerned with. More weight would help. Not a ton more but like 15-20 pounds more. Doable in 2 years.

[Proctor]

21/14 and 4 blocks

[Xiao Yao You]

21/14 and 4 blocks

good thing he's not facing Monroe and Whiteside

[Proctor]

For those who haven't seen Wemby play:

https://i.makeagif.com/media/10-24-2023/iu0Wpf.gif

Compare this to the stroke of a more rigid and stiff French big man:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8RY9NTnd70

https://dsz7vodgjx60a.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/bil-gobert.jpg

Wemby is scary good :applause:

[r0drig0lac]

:hammertime::hammertime:

[Manny98]

Already the best French big man in the league :applause:

[Wally450]

19/13/ 6 blocks

[Full Court]

30/15

[Cowboy Thunder]

I picked him in the first round of my fantasy basketball draft. Some say it was a stretch.

[Phoenix]

I'm expecting at least 25 points, not too many boards( maybe 5-6), but most importantly I'm expecting like 5 blocks. Teams are going to test the extent of how much defensive coverage is in his bag. Wouldn't surprise me if they put him on Luka at times and will be interesting to see how he responds.

[RRR3]

I'm expecting at least 25 points, not too many boards( maybe 5-6), but most importantly I'm expecting like 5 blocks. Teams are going to test the extent of how much defensive coverage is in his bag. Wouldn't surprise me if they put him on Luka at times and will be interesting to see how he responds.
I'm going out to see a concert with my friend so I can't watch NBA tonight, but I really hope I return to some sick highlights. I'm all aboard the Wemby hype train, I truly think he has GOAT potential.

[Dbrog]

Ima go with 18/5/3ast/3blks/1stl

[SATAN]

https://i1.wp.com/www.meme-arsenal.com/memes/56ddf797f09e91bb7917696ef375d9f4.jpg

[Kblaze8855]

He got bumped mid air and must have flown 5 feet.

[RoseCity07]

Wemby is a star already. This dude makes Spurs so much better. I think it's kinda insane the Mavs are favorite tonight. Like why? Because Luka and Kyrie? A ridiculously inefficient pairing.

[Proctor]

Yeah this Spurs team is making the playoffs. ISB called it :pimp:

[SaltyMeatballs]

Mavs play no defense whatsoever

[rmt]

I'm going out to see a concert with my friend so I can't watch NBA tonight, but I really hope I return to some sick highlights. I'm all aboard the Wemby hype train, I truly think he has GOAT potential.

Ridiculous expectations.

[Full Court]

Wemby's only shot 3 pointers so far in this game????

I don't like that. He should be killing the Mavs in the paint with high percentage shots.

[fourkicks44]

Essentially he is just the ultimate 3 and D player that is foul prone :confusedshrug:

[Xiao Yao You]

Essentially he is just the ultimate 3 and D player that is foul prone :confusedshrug:

young bigs are prone to fouls. Why you don't name rookies DPOTY based on pre season and hype

[jlip]

Just 18 minutes into his career it appears that Pop may play him like a Porzingis type player. Hopefully, he is allowed to post up more.

[fsvr54]

He's on the bench too much. I tuned in to watch him play, not other players

[bison]

Vassell >>>> Bustanyama

[coin24]

Called it as usual. Frail bust.

[fourkicks44]

How long untill we get a Wembanyama trade demand?

[jlip]

While Wemby does need to work on establishing low post position, the Spurs' guards need to learn how to deliver entry passes when he has an obvious mismatch and is calling for the ball. He just had Kyrie fronting him in the paint with his hand up, and they couldn't get him the ball.

[fourkicks44]

Lively's debut overshadowing Wemby's now

[Phoenix]

Luka doing Luka things.

5 fouls for Wemby. May as well let him play it out.

[Jud]

so i know rookies have had worse debuts, but considering all the hype is this the most disappointing debut in nba history? i think it might be

edit: lol as soon as a i post this he scores 7 more points in like 2 min

[SATAN]

Crazy impact. Shame about the fouls.

[RRR3]

Wemby up to 13 in 19 minutes.

[SATAN]

Better second half than AD and he hasn't even been on the court for most of it. :pimp:

[SaltyMeatballs]

Luka's so ****ing good

[Mask the Embiid]

Spurs so sorry :oldlol:. Poor wemby being drafted to this team of losers

[Phoenix]

Luuuuuuuuuka

[bison]

Luka Longthick

[SATAN]

As another poster said, they didn't get him the ball enough. Some Spurs players seem to think they are better than they actually are.

[fsvr54]

Lively is a monster

[Carbine]

It's wild how little touch time he has on this team of losers.

He's treated like just another guy in the offense. In reality, maybe two of these guys are on the Spurs in 4 years. Vessel and Schochan.

I'm surprised Pop let's it happen. He didn't have any problem giving the reigns to Duncan extremely early in his career when he has Davis Robinson competing for #1 option looks. The Spurs #1 option is..... Nobody knows.

[SaltyMeatballs]

He barely got any touches and was in foul trouble. Still had a respectable debut

[tpols]

Don't want to hear about the nickname "wemby" again. Its WEMBAN-YAMA-MUFASA.

Guy is the truth a mix between Durant and David Robinson.

[FultzNationRISE]

Don't want to hear about the nickname "wemby" again. Its WEMBAN-YAMA. Guy is the truth a mix between Durant and David Robinson.

Im going with Victor BendYaMomma

[Keno]

foul trouble machine and only 5 rebounds lol

[tpols]

Im going with Victor BendYaMomma

https://media.tenor.com/vGtq18rQ6x8AAAAC/lebron-james-wink.gif

[post]

agree about wemby (makes him sound like gumby)

[Dbrog]

Ima go with 18/5/3ast/3blks/1stl

Just sayin...pretty damn close

[Smook A.]

Would've liked to see more shot attempts from the post but still a pretty solid debut

[Foster5k]

Victor Wembanyama's rookie debut can be summed up in one word:

Lackluster.

The reasons:

1. Teammates wanted to get their shine on. I'm sorry but I didn't tune in to watch scrubs trying to outshine Wembanyama. Majority of fans can't even name who these guys are. Pass Wembanyama the ball and let him cook. I will say Devin Vassell got some hops. Mans was jumping out the gym, but pass the damn ball bro. We came to see Wemby.

2. Foul trouble. Got in early foul trouble resulting in getting benched. It was suppose to be the Wemby show. Sadly, for the majority of the game, we were watching him chill on the bench. Those turnovers didn't help either.

3. 3s.... I mean I'm not saying not to shoot 3s. If you're titled as the next big thing, I want to see more than just standing at the 3-point line jacking up 3s. 9 field gold attempts. 5 were 3s.... He shot good from 3 but I wanted to see more. Again... lackluster

4. Defense... people were saying this guy was going to be DPOTY. It's only one game but... you 7'4" with an incredible wingspan and only 1 blocked shot? Only 5 rebounds? Come on bro... that aint it. AGAIN... only 1 game but lackluster to say the least.


All in all, I wanted to see the alien. The guy who we've so called never seen before. I wanted to see VICTOR WEMBANYAMA. Instead I got the lowercase version.. a quiet little wemby who had a decent first game as a rookie. He still could be everything the hype says, but he wasn't this inspiring force of nature that we hyped up in his first game.

[elementally morale]

Just sayin...pretty damn close

You were the closest, I was 2nd closest. I didn't expect a better game in his debut only more blocks and more touches. I think he will do much better the next game. Just like in summer league and preseason. He will learn fast.

[Xiao Yao You]

Victor Wembanyama's rookie debut can be summed up in one word:

Lackluster.

The reasons:

1. Teammates wanted to get their shine on. I'm sorry but I didn't tune in to watch scrubs trying to outshine Wembanyama. Majority of fans can't even name who these guys are. Pass Wembanyama the ball and let him cook. I will say Devin Vassell got some hops. Mans was jumping out the gym, but pass the damn ball bro. We came to see Wemby.

2. Foul trouble. Got in early foul trouble resulting in getting benched. It was suppose to be the Wemby show. Sadly, for the majority of the game, we were watching him chill on the bench. Those turnovers didn't help either.

3. 3s.... I mean I'm not saying not to shoot 3s. If you're titled as the next big thing, I want to see more than just standing at the 3-point line jacking up 3s. 9 field gold attempts. 5 were 3s.... He shot good from 3 but I wanted to see more. Again... lackluster

4. Defense... people were saying this guy was going to be DPOTY. It's only one game but... you 7'4" with an incredible wingspan and only 1 blocked shot? Only 5 rebounds? Come on bro... that aint it. AGAIN... only 1 game but lackluster to say the least.


All in all, I wanted to see the alien. The guy who we've so called never seen before. I wanted to see VICTOR WEMBANYAMA. Instead I got the lowercase version.. a quiet little wemby who had a decent first game as a rookie. He still could be everything the hype says, but he wasn't this inspiring force of nature that we hyped up in his first game.

blocks don't tell you anything about defensive impact. His impact will be when guys avoid getting near him with the ball because they are scared

[ArbitraryWater]

blocks don't tell you anything about defensive impact. His impact will be when guys avoid getting near him with the ball because they are scared

i think they usually mean the defensive possession was successful.

[dbugz]

Softy

[WhiteKyrie]

Im going with Victor BendYaMomma
I would like to thank you for

a) genuinely making me laugh

and

b) my new fantasy team name

Utterly hilarious. Bravo

[elementally morale]

i think they usually mean the defensive possession was successful.

Sure. But you may have less blocks if they just fear you. In the case of Shaq for example. He never had the most blocks but perimeter players were somewhat reluctant attacking the paint with him being there. I think with Wembanyama the real danger is him as a help defemder or closing out on perimeter shots. We will see but I think perimeter players will try attacking him.

[Xiao Yao You]

Sure. But you may have less blocks if they just fear you. In the case of Shaq for example. He never had the most blocks but perimeter players were somewhat reluctant attacking the paint with him being there. I think with Wembanyama the real danger is him as a help defemder or closing out on perimeter shots. We will see but I think perimeter players will try attacking him.

Gobert led the league once. He also became a better rebounder by not trying to block everything

[WhiteKyrie]

i think they usually mean the defensive possession was successful.

You can get blocks and not always be a good defender, especially at his size, it can like borderline accidentally happen.

Being a consistent nuisance and solid defender not letting your opponents score or get position easy or contest shots with the threat of a block or no easy open looks with close outs is actual quality consistent defense.

That’s why sometimes even steals isn’t indicative of a quality defender. Like say Allen Iverson was not a good defender, but he did have impact on that end because he was a gambler and played passing lanes, so he shot the lane and got a lot of steals which reversed possession for his team, which is great. But more often than not, not a good defender at all. Didn’t have great principles and discipline.

That’s how you can tell the people that actually played from stat junkies and nerds. Defense isn’t entirely measurable in a stat column the way offense can be. It requires watching and understanding the game. Continuing with the Allen Iverson analogy, steal king, but a guy like Kirk Hinrich was a vastly superior defender. At both guard positions.

[Xiao Yao You]

Whiteside blocked lots of shots but was a horrible defender

[Xiao Yao You]

You can get blocks and not always be a good defender, especially at his size, it can like borderline accidentally happen.

Being a consistent nuisance and solid defender not letting your opponents score or get position easy is actual quality consistent defense.

That’s why sometimes even steals isn’t indicative of a quality defender. Like say Allen Iverson was not a good defender, but he did have impact on that end because he was a gambler and played passing lanes, so he shot the lane and got a lot of steals which reversed possession for his team, which is great. But more often than not, not a good defender at all. Didn’t have great principles and discipline.

That’s how you can tell the people that actually played from stat junkies and nerds. Defense isn’t entirely measurable in a stat column the way offense can be. It requires watching and understanding the game. Continuing with the Allen Iverson analogy, steal king, but a guy like Kirk Hinrich was a vastly superior defender. At both guard positions.

Mark Eaton fits the accidentally. They taught him to put his arms up in the air. He had a hard time even keeping track of where the ball was. He'd turn around and someone would shoot into his raised hands and in the packed paint of the 80's he was considered great despite being completely clueless

[Indian guy]

What an annoying game to watch. Wembaya is easily that team's best offensive player yet barely ever got the ball. Clearly some major jealousy issues on that team. Pop will straighten that shit out though.

[Gotterdammerung]

While Wemby failed to break Chamberlain's record 43 points and 27 rebounds debut for a rookie, the sky is still the limit.

There was a massive difference: Wilt was 23 years old, while Wemby is a skinny 19 years old. Wilt had already played with the Harlem Globetrotters for a year, and they had some of the best ballplayers in the world at that time.

Wemby has the size and athleticism and obvious talent, but his body is still developing, and he is still learning the game. It was easy to push him off the post. But suffice to say that his rookie season averages will be better than last night.

Someday, #BendyaMomma will be trending
:oldlol:

[Dbrog]

You were the closest, I was 2nd closest. I didn't expect a better game in his debut only more blocks and more touches. I think he will do much better the next game. Just like in summer league and preseason. He will learn fast.

Yup agreed. He will have ups and downs like every other rookie. He's also a big which means he likely won't fully figure things out for 3/4+ years and that's ok. That will start the Spurs window where their upcoming draft picks will also have been developed. League better watch out at that point

[WhiteKyrie]

Wemby is going to be the modern Wilt

[elementally morale]

Yup agreed. He will have ups and downs like every other rookie. He's also a big which means he likely won't fully figure things out for 3/4+ years and that's ok. That will start the Spurs window where their upcoming draft picks will also have been developed. League better watch out at that point

If he doesn't get injured fast, I think he will be at least a top 10 player impact wise in like 2 years. He has very good fundamentals, kind of like The Big Fundamental only Wemby's fundamentals are more sound as a perimeter player. With a David Robinson next to him... but if someone, I think he is the one who could profit the most from a whole summer's tutoring from Hakeem. Wemby is agile enough and young enough to learn and well execute all those moves.

[Xiao Yao You]

If he doesn't get injured fast, I think he will be at least a top 10 player impact wise in like 2 years. He has very good fundamentals, kind of like The Big Fundamental only Wemby's fundamentals are more sound as a perimeter player. With a David Robinson next to him... but if someone, I think he is the one who could profit the most from a whole summer's tutoring from Hakeem. Wemby is agile enough and young enough to learn and well execute all those moves.

Sampson could probably use the work more than Hakeem

[Spurs m8]

I'm glad we all got to witness the debut of the GOAT.

What a time to be alive

[Axe]

Lmao and just like that, scrotum m8 is back all of a sudden. Wassup chico. :oldlol:

[Spurs m8]

For all the people overreacting...didn't read thread but it's ish and low iq, threatened bronies

The ceiling of Wemby is literally GOAT

And he's actually entertaining...

https://i.ibb.co/3m6sgnc/Screenshot-20231027-074118-Instagram.jpg

[Spurs m8]

Lmao and just like that, scrotum m8 is back all of a sudden. Wassup chico. :oldlol:

Well yeah, the season literally just started...

[8Ball]

Overrated and will get hurt and Yao Minged out of the league.

One LeBron elbow during a drive and this kid will go straight to the locker room clutching his ribs.

Needs to gain like 30-40 lbs.

[SATAN]

For all the people overreacting...didn't read thread but it's ish and low iq, threatened bronies

The ceiling of Wemby is literally GOAT

And he's actually entertaining...

https://i.ibb.co/3m6sgnc/Screenshot-20231027-074118-Instagram.jpg

Most of the LeBron guys like Wemby actually...

[Spurs m8]

Most of the LeBron guys like Wemby actually...

Fantastic to hear, big fella

:cheers:

[Full Court]

Most of the LeBron guys like Wemby actually...

No they don't. They're scared. Another one who might pass up their hero.

All they keep talking about is how he's going to get injured....like it's already happened.

[90sgoat]

I'll be watching a lot of games for Wemby this year, so let me get that out of the way to not be called a hater again.

I project Wemby as Porzingis+ which I don't really see why people take offense to, it's basically an MVP level player and someone who can change playoff games by themselves.

I'd like to ask others though, do you see Wemby, right now, having a GOAT skillset? Because I don't.

I think Wemby can be a top 10 all time player, which is essentially GOAT-ish, because so little is separating the top 10, but he needs to pick a lane and stay with it.

If he is to be Durant, then he needs to work so hard on his 3 pointers and his jumper. I'd rather like to see him come back next year with a small skyhook. He'll literally be unstoppable if he can get a hook going. With his already ability to shoot, run and get easy putbacks, if you get that hook going, he'll be unguardable.

[90sgoat]

What an annoying game to watch. Wembaya is easily that team's best offensive player yet barely ever got the ball. Clearly some major jealousy issues on that team. Pop will straighten that shit out though.

Same thing happened to Luka and Porzingis. It was really bad with Porzingis in Knicks.

American players don't like it when euros come in with big hype.

Pop will have to bench or ship those guys who won't accept it.

[rmt]

For all the people overreacting...didn't read thread but it's ish and low iq, threatened bronies

The ceiling of Wemby is literally GOAT

And he's actually entertaining...

https://i.ibb.co/3m6sgnc/Screenshot-20231027-074118-Instagram.jpg

Dates are over wrong columns. I'm pretty sure game score in 1997 wasn't even close to 126-119 - lol.

Didn't vote because I don't want to call anyone an idiot. GOAT expectations are unrealistic - give the kid some space to do his thing.

[SATAN]

Bad night from the floor but just had back to back blocks in a crucial moment down the stretch. Spurs still playing like dumb asses and not getting him the ball.

[Full Court]

Wemby needs to stop trying to be a three point shooter. Three point shooters are a dime a dozen in today's NBA. That's not what makes him special. And he's not that good at it.

[SATAN]

Wemby ties the game. Trade this guy to LA already. :applause:

[Spurs m8]

We've got the clutch gene, boys.

[Carbine]

He just has his "moment"

Those blocks and game tying shot in the clutch.

[Carbine]

Bad night from the floor but just had back to back blocks in a crucial moment down the stretch. Spurs still playing like dumb asses and not getting him the ball.

Pop has lost his fastball. If he was throwing 99mph in 2014 he's down to 88 right now. I think this is a run of the mill coached team right now. Arguably badly coached for not putting his players in their proper roles.