NBA – VICTOR WEMBANYAMA, TOO Clumsy.. DO NOT PANIC !!

Victor Wembanyama has had nights without shooting since his arrival in the NBA. During its first eleven matches, the French giant only had a 43.2% shooting success rate, despite a few cards. An address targeted by its detractors. But this is easily explained and there is even no reason to sound the alarm at the moment.

“Overrated, overrated”! Some Knicks fans took the liberty of criticizing him during his missed appearance at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks. His 4 out of 14 shooting that evening, or 28.6% success, delighted the demanding New York public. Since then, there have been other nights without it. Tuesday, he ended up with a pitiful 4 out of 15 against the Thunder (26.7%). And two days before, his stats sheet showed a mediocre 8 out of 22 against the Heat (36.4%).

With his shooting percentage of 43.2% since his debut in the NBA despite his cards against Phoenix (15 out of 26, or 57.7%) and Minnesota (12 out of 21, or 57.1%), Victor Wembanyama finds himself regularly singled out for its faulty address. This is one of the dark spots of his start to the season in the big League with his lost balls (3.9 per match) after eleven matches.

Victor Wembanyama shooting in front of Bam Adebayo (San Antonio-Miami)
Credit: Getty Images

43.2% SUCCESS

So too clumsy, Victor Wembanyama? He has his nights off, like many players. But the observation is a little too quick. If he often misses shots, there are reasons for that. And then 43.2% success is not catastrophic either given his game. It is certainly quite low for a boy of 2m24, while players with his dimensions often reach over 50% success, or even more. But the former prodigy from Nanterre is not like the others.

We repeat it enough that we don’t have to insist on it because that’s what makes him so unique: Wembanyama is a giant who doesn’t play like the others. So slender for his size, he likes to take shots from afar and is not content to stay under the circle to score dunks. Obviously, his address suffers. Despite his fantastic performance in Pro A with Boulogne-Levallois last season, he only had a 47% shooting success rate. Which is much better of course than what he’s doing in the NBA. But there, he took a new step. And must learn to live in this new world. Which is not necessarily obvious.

NEW YORK, NY – NOVEMBER 8: Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs looks on during the game against the New York Knicks on November 8, 2023 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees thatCredit: Eurosport

SOME NBA TEAMS HAVE FOUND THE RECIPE: “YOU HAVE TO BE AGGRESSIVE AND PHYSICAL WITH HIM”

Announced for months as an “alien”, Wembanyama must get special treatment for his first steps in the League. All the teams are looking forward to him, the players are focused on him and he is obviously targeted with two-man catches or defenders on missions. And as ASVEL did for example last season by placing Charles Kahudi on him, opposing franchises do not hesitate to put smaller but more mobile or more alethic players on him. To physically impact him.

Against the Rockets, Dillon Brooks (1m98) took charge of him in sequences. And against Indiana, it was Obi Toppin, 2m06 tall, who was sent to Wemby with some success (13 pts on 3 out of 12 shooting, or 25%). “He’s really big, but being physical with him is the only thing you can do,” the Pacers power forward said after the game for USA Today. Same story with Robert Covington, who took care of the Frenchman when he was still with the Clippers at the start of the season: “You have to be aggressive and physical with him,” summed up the 2m01 winger on NBA.com. “We tried to make his life more difficult. To ensure that he was not in his comfort zone,” added Tyronn Lue, the Clippers coach.

Like his entire San Antonio Spurs team, Victor Wembanyama suffered Monday night against the Indiana Pacers
Credit: Getty Images

THE SPURS DO NOT NECESSARILY HELP HIM

The first reason for the French international’s poor performance, as well as for his loss of balls, is there: the physical impact he suffers. “Everyone is going to be physical with him, trying to unbalance him and he has to get used to it,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich admitted in recent days. “That’s probably the biggest difference for him.”

To make matters worse, Victor Wembanyama also discovers the great NBA world in a team under reconstruction. One of the worst in the League last season. And the Spurs don’t really play basketball capable of putting him in the best conditions currently. The ball does not move optimally while Gregg Popovich experiments from time to time with Jeremy Sochan in the lead, he who is a… strong winger. Wemby is then not always served in the best conditions. “As soon as he is on one side, the Spurs play on the other,” Frédéric Weis, Bein Sport consultant on NBA Extra, remarked on Wednesday.

Spurs who are also content for the moment with the bare minimum in terms of coaching with their draft number 1. “We are in an observation phase,” Gregg Popovich admitted this week. “He does some really special things. He does other things that I don’t want him to do. But I’m going to say very little to him right now because I have to learn where he feels most at home. “comfortable. Where he has the most impact, both defensively and offensively.” Which can also explain the Frenchman’s sometimes approximate selection of shots.

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😬 Wemby et les Spurs dans le dur
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DURANT, LEBRON OR EMBIID HAVE ALSO BEEN THERE

The reasons are therefore multiple. And there is nothing to sound the alarm at the moment. Especially since it’s a classic process for a rookie. During his first season in the NBA, Kevin Durant only shot at 43% before increasing to 47.6 the following season and is now shooting at over 51.4%. Joël Embiid also had his worst address percentage during his first NBA season (46.6% compared to 54.8% last season for example).

Same story for LeBron James with 41.7% during his 2003-2004 season, he who is at 50.5% in his career. “You have a 19-year-old rookie who is discovering the NBA. There is compulsory learning,” summarizes Gregg Popovich. “Offensively, I’m not really worried. He can get all the shots he wants. He has a certain fluidity and feeling that are rare for his size,” concludes an NBA scout for The Athletic. Clearly, Wemby is just getting the hang of the NBA.