Victor Wembanyama is preparing for his 100th NBA game. He breaks down his historic start

Victor Wembanyama is preparing for his 100th NBA game. He breaks down his historic start

This is a huge milestone for Victor Wembanyama, the San Antonio Spurs star and the future of the NBA. Recall that he was so hyped as a must-have prospect that the NBA streamed his French League games on its app a year before he was eligible for the draft. The league took a bit of a bet on whether he would be a hit in the NBA, but he proved he was that and more. A year ago he was listed at 7-foot-4, but this season he is listed at 7-foot-3. You can not Convince me that he isn’t 9 feet tall and standing in a long line of players who don’t want their exact height revealed. Regardless, Wembanyama has completely changed the way we look at basketball and what’s possible on the court in a very short space of time.

How short? Let’s get back to this milestone weekend for Wemby. Wembanyama will play his 100th career game on Friday night against the Denver Nuggets. He turns 21 on Saturday. What he has accomplished on an individual level in helping to restore the Spurs organization to the gold standard on the field is nothing short of historic. How historic, you ask? Great question! Let’s take a look at what Wemby has already achieved in his 100th career game:

What does his second season look like?

So far it’s impressive! With veteran additions Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes, the Spurs have gone from a poor team led by a young star that got beat on most nights last season to a much-improved squad in the postseason hunt this season. San Antonio is 17-16 and sits in ninth place in the Western Conference. On an individual level, Wemby’s numbers continue to be impressive as the 2024-25 season progresses:

  • 25.6 points
  • 10.0 rebounds
  • 3.9 assists
  • 3.9 blocks
  • 1.0 steals
  • 3.4 turnovers
  • 48.0 FG percentage
  • 35.5 3-point FG percentage on 9.4 attempts per game
  • 87.9 free throw rate

These are pretty absurd numbers any player, let alone a 20-year-old. The Spurs are plus-5.2 points per 100 possessions in 920 minutes with Wembanyama on the field. With him off the floor, they drop to minus-7.0 in 669 minutes.

go deeper

Go deeper

Wemby competes against his guests in Washington Square Park in New York

What has he been doing lately? Is this curve sustainable?

We just looked at his sophomore year numbers, which are impressive. But much like last season, when Wemby gradually turned things around to take his game to new levels, he has done the same this season. Check out his numbers from the first nine games this season:

  • 17.7 points
  • 9.6 rebounds
  • 2.7 assists
  • 3.7 blocks
  • 1.6 steals
  • 3.4 turnovers
  • 41.3 FG percentage
  • 22.6 3-point FG percentage on 6.9 attempts per game
  • 91.2 free throw rate

Those still aren’t bad numbers, aside from his overall shooting percentage and inefficiency of 3. Any sophomore who averaged those numbers over an entire sophomore season would still have created incredible expectations. If Wemby had maintained those averages, he would have joined David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon and Bob McAdoo as the only sophomores in NBA history to average 17 points, nine rebounds, two assists and three blocks. But in the tenth game of the season, Wembanyama’s Bunsen burner began to burn in historic fashion. These are his numbers since November 9th:

  • 29.3 points
  • 10.2 rebounds
  • 4.4 assists
  • 0.8 steals
  • 4.1 blocks
  • 3.4 turnovers
  • 50.4 FG percentage
  • 39.5 3FG percentage on 10.5 attempts per game
  • 86.7 free throw rate

What the hell? He’s 20 (at the time of publication)! Here is the list of players in NBA history who averaged 29 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and four blocks in a season:

This has never happened before! It’s probably because the NBA didn’t track blocks when Wilt Chamberlain played, but still! But I know what you’re thinking. You can’t extrapolate averages over a 19-game period and use that as a measure for an entire season. Secure! Let’s not distort these averages and pretend that they are completely sustainable. Here is the list of players who have averaged at least 29-10-4-4 over a 19-game span:

  • Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did it in the 1975-76 season. He was 28 and in his seventh year in the NBA.
  • David Robinson did it in the 1993/94 season. He was also 28 and in his fifth season.
  • Wemby this season. He turns 21 again on Saturday and is not even halfway through his second season.

I can’t even say exactly whether this production is sustainable for two reasons. On the one hand, we have never experienced anything like this. On the other hand, Wembanyama will be much better than he is now. Let’s move on to the areas in which Wembanyama differed from his teammates and the greats before him in his first 100 games. These are numbers from the basketball reference search engine Stathead from the 1984-85 season to the present.

Let’s talk about his scoring abilities

Obviously we’re assuming 99 games as Wembanyama’s 100th game is on Friday evening. He has scored a total of 2,238 points in his career. Since Olajuwon and Michael Jordan debuted in the 1984-85 season, only seven players have scored more points in their first 100 games than Wemby: Jordan (2,721), Zion Williamson (2,524), Robinson (2,476), Shaquille O’Neal (2,427 ). ), Luka Dončić (2,332), Allen Iverson (2,258) and Joel Embiid (2,247).

If Wemby scores 21 points or more in game No. 100 against Denver, only five players will be ahead of him.

How about his rebounding?

Wemby has 1,035 rebounds in the NBA. Since the start of the 1984-85 season, only 10 players have had more rebounds in 100 NBA games: O’Neal (1,350), Dikembe Mutombo (1,211), Tim Duncan (1,198), Robinson (1,197), Olajuwon (1,190). , Blake Griffin (1,188), Larry Johnson (1,089), Deandre Ayton (1,075), Emeka Okafor (1,069) and Karl-Anthony Towns (1,035).

In his 100th game, Wemby needs just four rebounds to shorten the list to nine players and move into the top 10. And to be a little more specific: How crazy is it that Duncan and Robinson were so close to 100 rebounds in their first games? Especially given the aspect of passing the torch? Pretty cool!

What about his shot blocking?

Wemby has 364 career blocks. Since the start of the 1984-85 season, only two players have blocked more shots in their first 100 games. By then, Robinson had blocked 383 shots. The late, great Manute Bol rejected a ridiculous 425 attempts. If we look back a little further, Wembanyama has more blocks in 100 games than Mark Eaton (342). This isn’t a bad team when it comes to protecting the rim. With O’Neal ahead of Wemby in scoring and rebounding, it’s worth noting that Diesel blocked 349 shots in his first 100 games.

We must not forget his death

In this case, we can limit ourselves to anything to provide more context. Wemby dished out 382 assists. Of everyone else listed as a center on Basketball-Reference, only Brad Daugherty had more assists in his first 100 games, 398. It’s worth noting that Abdul-Jabbar had 375 assists in his first 100 games and is therefore just behind what Wembanyama has already done.

go deeper

Go deeper

Amick: Victor Wembanyama’s “problems” are tiny compared to the huge things he’s already doing

After that, we see Clifford Ray (323), Oliver Miller (303) and Embiid (288) as next. However, they are not close at all. And by the way: if you eliminate the big qualifier, Wembanyama is in 62nd place all Players who have provided assists in their first 100 games since the 1984-85 season. Wembanyama has more dimes in his first 100 games than Griffin (366), Donovan Mitchell (366), Vince Carter (337), Anthony Edwards (311), Duncan (266), Devin Booker (266), Charles Barkley (214), Robinson (210), O’Neal (192) and Steve Nash (271). Obviously it took Nash a while to get some playing time before his career transitioned into a Hall of Fame campaign, but you get the idea by now.

And the jump shooting?

In the NBA, Wemby hit 221 three-pointers. Since the start of the 1984/85 season, only nine players have made more three-pointers in 100 appearances: Brandon Miller (273), Anthony Edwards (258), Keegan Murray (256), Dončić (250), Damian Lillard (235), Saddiq Bey ( 234), Jalen Green (232), Donovan Mitchell (229) and Lauri Markkanen (228).

Obviously the game has changed a lot in those four or so decades of 3-point shooting, but Wembanyama made even more 3-pointers in his first 100 games than Steph Curry (200) and Klay Thompson (204). Not to mention that in his first 100 NBA games, Ray Allen scored 145 points, Reggie Miller scored 81, and James Harden scored 121. That’s not to say Wembanyama will end up questioning any of his career shooting achievements, even if it is in the was the case in the last 19 games Do raise an eyebrow or two. It’s just a reminder of how much 3-point volume has changed in the last few years.

go deeper

Go deeper

Victor Wembanyama becomes the fourth youngest player with 50 game points

Trae Young is currently tied with Wemby, but as long as the Spurs big man makes a three-pointer against Denver on Friday, he will be the sole owner of the 10th spot on this list. When he reaches the eight, he overtakes Markkanen and equalizes Mitchell. With nine goals he will overtake Mitchell and secure the eighth place on this list.

One final context

Let’s assume Wemby’s averages of 25.6 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.9 blocks are for the season. At this point, we’re not talking about sophomores in the NBA or just comparing 100-game starts. He would become only the third player in league history to average at least 25-10-3-3 over a full season any Age. Abdul-Jabbar did it twice, at 26 and 28 years old. Olajuwon also achieved the feat twice, at the ages of 30 and 31.

What will it look like in five years? Ten years? There are no limits to his possibilities. There is no precedent for what will become of him. There are no superlatives that go too far.

(Photo: Luke Hales/Getty Images)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *