There were more than 200 NBA scouts and executives in attendance on Tuesday to watch the projected top two picks in the 2023 draft square off, as Victor Wembanyama and French club Metropolitans 92 faced Scoot Henderson and the G League Ignite, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
Henderson, widely viewed as the second-best prospect in next year’s draft class, lived up to that billing, racking up 28 points to go along with nine assists and five rebounds. He led the Ignite to a 122-115 victory.
But it was Wembanyama who stole the show, even in a losing cause. The 7’3″ Frenchman poured in 37 points on just 20 field goal attempts, knocking down seven three-pointers and blocking five shots. According to Matt Williams of ESPN (Twitter link), only one player in NBA history has ever made seven threes and blocked five shots in a single game before — Danny Green did it in a triple-overtime game in 2014.
Wembanyama admitted after Tuesday’s game that the longer G League quarters affected his stamina, but his incredible performance showed why he’s considered one of the best NBA prospects in years.
“He was amazing,” Metropolitans 92 coach Vincent Collet said, per Myron Medcalf of ESPN. “What he can do with his size, his agility, mobility, not only his ability to shoot the three, moving very well. He even made a couple of very good passes. I think he (had) a real good game but he also will learn from the first half. He has to fight more because he knows to expect that kind of aggressive defense.”
As Jeremy Woo of SI.com writes, after Tuesday’s game, the idea of tanking for a shot at Wembanyama may look even more appealing to a handful of the NBA teams likely headed for a lottery spot this season.
As we outlined when we conducted our over/under polls last month, the Thunder, Pacers, Spurs, Rockets, Jazz, and Magic are projected to be the NBA’s bottom-feeders in 2022/23. But even the league’s very worst team will only have a 14% shot at the No. 1 overall pick in the draft lottery, so a number of clubs will be in play for Wembanyama.
In the wake of Tuesday’s impressive showcase, we want to know what you think. Which lottery-bound team would be the best landing spot for Wembanyama?
You can interpret that question in any way you like — there are, of course, certain teams that might be more ideal for the big man’s development, while certain landing spots would just be flat-out entertaining. For instance, as Tom Ziller notes on his Substack, if the Lakers’ 2023 first-round pick lands at No. 1, the Pelicans would be able to swap their own first-round pick for it and pair Wembanyama with Zion Williamson.
Does that Pelicans scenario sound like one you’d want to play out? Or would you rather see Wembanyama join forces with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren in Oklahoma City; Jalen Green and Jabari Smith in Houston; Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner in Orlando; Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, and Jalen Duren in Detroit; or Tyrese Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin in Indiana?
Head to the comment section to weigh in with your thoughts!
i’d love to see him in indiana
7 teams are trying to “murder” Rockets via tanking
Magic
Pistons
Pacers
Spurs
Thunder
Jazz
Lakers if injured?
Tanking is against the nba rules
Should the Rockets file complaint?
Lakers pick goes to Pelicans and the way their roster is set up, it’s highly likely the Pelicans get another lottery pick. David Griffin with the 3-D chess
Westbrook is the biggest tank commander in the history of sports
I want Westbrook
As I said way back on a different article, I think Wembanyama would be best suited for the spurs. They always develop players well, it’s a good organization, and pop is the best coach!
I’m in total agreement with you. San Antonio is the absolute best place for him. He will maximize is skill set with them. They have shown they know what to do with generational type big man.
1987 David Robinson
1997 Tim Duncan
2023 Victor Wembanyama
He will be another great along the way. Gregg Popovich deserves it.
Robinson is not a good example smh. Lmao @ Pop deserves it
Tell him this:
1983 – Ralph Sampson
1984 – Hakeem Olajuwon
2002 – Yao Ming
2023 – Victor Wembanyama
1983 – Ralph Sampson
1984 – Hakeem Olajuwon
2002 – Yao Ming
2023 – Victor Wembanyama
I like the Rockets as a fit for Victor Wembanyama. They have had a lot of success with massive 7-footers seeing they won 2 championships with Olajuwon and had considerable playoff success with Yao Ming and Ralph Sampson.
This could have been a poll. Your last paragraph there is the question you were asking, clearly stated, I would have led with that.
Has to be San Antonio right? He fits like a glove with their other young players
PG: Primo, Tre Jones
SG: Vassell, Wesley
SF: Keldon Johnson, Branham,
PF: Sochan
C: Wembanyama,
Who’s gonna get him the ball? More I think about it SA is probably the worst place for him to go. He’d lose a lot there & prob wouldn’t re-up
More about playing time than winning. You think he wants to sit on the bench for a winning team? Of course not. SA or Orlando would be the best spots.
He’s obv not sitting the bench for any lottery team. Playing time isn’t a concern at all. Tbh best case scenario prob would be if he could somehow get to a Denver or Philly & play a similar role as Kobe did in his 1st couple seasons. But pt is the least of anyone’s worries lol he’d play for any team in the league
Both of those team would not provide much playing time unless a injury happens. Winning teams need chemistry and it would be a lot to ask a young player to come in and learn their system on the go. Both those teams would need to trade their best assets in the draft to get him. Both those team already have the 2 of the top centers in the NBA. Whatever team has a top pick to get him will not trade him since he could be a franchise player.
Smh
SA is a nice fit. Wembo is gonna be a ball dominant player , he handles pretty well for someone his size. The ball dominant backcourts in DET and HOU would be worse fits imo.
SA has solid if unspectacular role guys such as Vassell and Keldon. Branham and Primo are young and could develop nicely. Sochan would be a perfect fit next to Wembo as a potential draymond green type defender.
Tre Jones a bit underrated but could see SA take a flier on someone like Westbrook in the offseason for vet leadership and a penetrator guard.
In SA he wouldn’t have any teammates capable of consistently gettin in the lane & gettin him easy dunks, in Houston he’d have at least 2. He’d have better p&r partners in Houston both as a roll man & as a ballhandler. He’s a tough minded kid but he’s slight of frame & having feisty, bully type wings as teammates will help him the same way it helped Ewing/Admiral later in their careers. Houston has those type guys, SA not so much. SA has a coach who may retire at any moment. Houston is a much more attractive free agent destination & more likely to add the type of elite talent it would take to win.
You are correct. Houston would be a great fit for Victor Wembanyama and if need be, they can upgrade at PG to acquire more of a high-level playmaker be it via trade or free agency as you have stated.
Victor Wembanyama is also a great fit next to Jalen Green and an outstanding fit next to Jabari Smith Jr. in the frontcourt, as both Jabari Smith Jr. and Victor Wembanyama can shoot threes and defend well at their positions, as Jabari’s perimeter defense works perfectly in tandem with Wembanyama’s shot-blocking and rim-protection.
The spacing they would creat for Jalen Green to attack the basket would be perfect futuristic basketball. I like the fit of Wembanyama on the Rockets and the free agency aspect can be used to the Rockets’ advantage to further improve the team after winning the lottery and drafting Wembanyama since Houston is a free agency destination and a large city.
I agree with you. I think in comparison to the Spurs, the Rockets would be a better fit as they already have an established ball-hander and scoring lead guard in Jalen Green, and his ability to attack the basket would be unstoppable with Jabari Smith Jr. and Victor Wembanyama as a pair of stretch bigs that can space the floor for him when he drives to the basket.
Also, Houston is a free agency destination and the Rockets FO is quite proactive when it comes to making trades or trying to upgrade the team, so the Rockets can upgrade at PG to gain a better playmaker for Wembanyama, Green, and Jabari if for whatever reason KPJ is not the answer, but all in all, Wembanyama would be a great fit in Houston.
Da SPURS.
The basketball gods have taken from me long enough. The drought. Miss after miss on draft picks. Trading Haliburton just to miss the play in.
Sacramento has earned the right to draft Wembanyama. Anything less is poppycock.
The disrespect for Scoot is ridiculous smh. He was just as great as Wembo if not moreso. As far as the Frenchman I would love to see him with a dynamic lead guard that can penetrate & drop him off for easy dunks/spectacular alleys. KPJ & Jalen Green would be the perfect backcourt for him to play with. Houston’s tough, athletic wings (Tate, lil KMart & Eason) are sorta perfect for him too. Alpo & Jabari are perfect complements as bigs too… Scoot would be best in Utah or SA, 2 franchises that badly need an elite lead guard
I agree with everything you said. Victor Wembanyama would be an amazing fit in Houston forming a two-way stretch frontcourt with Jabari Smith Jr. while also partnering with the ideal scoring lead guard in Jalen Green. It is a great fit for him. Also, Houston is a FA destination, so the potential to upgrade is also there if they want more of a natural playmaking PG next to Green, Jabari, and Wembanyama, but the Rockets to me have a great fit for Victor Wembanyama.
Houston would be a great landing spot. Sengun is great but I still think he ends up a PF, he just doesn’t match up very well with the bigger centers in the league. Flipping him could probably get a great return also. Though the balls haven’t dropped the rockets way the last few drafts so doubt they get that lucky this year
I agree.
The Rockets had optimal odds to get the #1 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and the 2022 NBA Draft. Even though they may be better, they are due to move up in the draft in my opinion, especially since they slid down from #1 to the second and third picks in the 2021 and 2022 NBA Drafts respectively.
I also think a frontcourt of Jabari Smith Jr. and Victor Wembanyama is highly intriguing because both can shoot well and defend their positions extremely well, so Houston would be a great landing spot for Victor Wembanyama. Plus, opposing bigs cannot bring help on or collapse on Jalen Green when he drives, as they would be leaving either Jabari Smith Jr. or Victor Wembanyama open for 3.
It’s perfect futuristic basketball.
“Though the balls haven’t dropped the rockets way the last few drafts so doubt they get that lucky this year”
That means the 2023 draft lottery may finally be the year where they are due to move up and get the #1 pick in the draft. They had the worst record and therefore optimal odds at landing the #1 pick in both the 2021 and 2022 NBA Drafts, yet they fell in both drafts as you alluded it. The 2023 NBA Draft may finally be the year where this changes, even if the Rockets may have improved as a team than before.
It would be interesting to see him in Detroit with their other young guys
Knicks should tank
For me, I’d like to see Wembanyama go to Houston.
In my opinion, the Rockets have an elite fit for Victor Wembanyama. Wembanyama and Jabari Smith Jr. have complementary defensive games, with Jabari’s perimeter defense in tandem with Wembanyama’s shot-blocking and rim-protection. Moreover, having a frontcourt where both of your starting bigs are capable three-point shooters is a very intriguing proposition, yet that is exactly what a frontcourt of Jabari Smith Jr. and Victor Wembanyama would present. Jalen Green would have a field day attacking the basket as opposing rim-protectors cannot leave either Jabari Smith Jr. or Victor Wembanyama open for 3 to help contain Jalen Green when Jalen Green drives. With both of them on the perimeter, Jalen Green would be much harder to defend.
It’s perfect futuristic basketball if the Rockets were to win the lottery and draft Victor Wembanyama.
OKC would be fun. I know they already have Chet but having two 7 footers that can play on the perimeter and two guards that would willingly create for them would make for an interesting dynamic.
That being said ultimately I want him in Utah where he can be the face of the franchise.
Indy trading Heild and Turner for Russ and settling for just 1 first round pick and some seconds. Then buying Russ out would mean they’d have to likely be the favourite.
Tyrese Benedict and Victor I think would be a terrific big 3 but even for the time being Jalen Smith and Isiah Jackson would get a solid opportunity aswell. Both guys could work well at the 4 spot next to Victor.
The other team I like is the spurs.
Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan and Victor. They’d have to invest in adding a point guard that can get him the ball but that can be done via a trade or Fa. Best thing for the spurs is even if they end up second overall Scoot Henderson would also be a terrific fit for them. So for them it’s a win win situation
Regarding the Pacers, I would agree IF AND ONLY IF they somehow try to trade for a marquee young SF, using Myles Turner and/or Buddy Hield or later using the picks acquired from that Lakers trade, like OG Anunoby, and then I agree. I feel the Pacers have a good fit for Wembanyama but they need to be a bit more proactive and key in on the SF position and find their SF of the future, whomever that may be. Assuming come the deadline the Pacers work out an extend-and-trade with Toronto for Myles Turner and get OG Anunoby in return while still securing optimal odds to get the #1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft and actually get that pick, they would then have the following starting five in Indiana:
Haliburton – Mathurin – OG – Smith/Jackson – Wembanyama
I’d like to see him go to the Pacers IF AND ONLY IF they can do this.
Fair perspective, I think the pacers will want to evaluate who they have and how good there are before making a splash in a trade. You make Malakai who can play the 3, Oshae Brissett I think starts and he’s only 24. Aaron Nesmith is also there.
I think planning ahead for the future you actually really want to make that Russ deal as it ships out two players that’ll win you games you don’t actually want to win. You want to lose games at get the first overall pick and take Victor. Not to mention you’ll be getting back picks in return to help the rebuild and you open up cap space at the end of the season with Russ’s expiring deal.
Say they don’t make a play for a SF like you want and simply tank for Victor. They could still make a play for a SF in FA such as Andrew Wiggins, Kelly Oubre, DeAndre Hunter, Cam Johnson, Cam Reddish and Mattise Thybulle.
1. Tyrese
2. Malakai/Duarte
3. Wiggins/Oubre/Hunter/Johnson/Reddish/Thybulle/Brissett/Nesmith
4. Jackson/Smith
5. Victor
That’s the way I’d be heading and keeping the lakers picks for the future. Of those guys I’d say Reddish is the most likely, but Hunter should be the target and Oubre would be a decent back up option if you miss out.
To me, that’s risky because any of those players can get matched. All of them outside of Oubre and Wiggins are restricted free agents. Much like what occured with Ayton, they can just get matched by their current teams. On the other hand, OG Anunoby is a sure thing if you make the play and meet the asking price Toronto has in mind.
Even if they need to give up more in addition to Turner, the Pacers’ rebuild will end the moment they draft Victor Wembanyama. Also, OG Anunoby would not get in the way of winning games in a tanking year anyways after trading for him.
Pacers would still have a great perimeter trio of Haliburton, Mathurin, and OG in any case. I would meet whatever asking price Toronto seeks as the Pacers. OG has high potential. Mathurin is more of a SG, not a SF. Therefore, trading for OG would be a smart, proactive, and intelligent move by the Pacers.
Then, Pacers can be a future dynasty and control their own fate by trading for OG Anunoby and not risking getting matched like what happened with Ayton by going for some of the other SF’s you mentioned in RFA.
Pacers need sure things, especially after how the Ayton situation unfolded. If the Pacers traded for OG Anunoby, they would get their SF of the future while not lowering their odds at landing Victor Wembanyama. In RFA, anything can happen. Contracts can get matched. I’d still go with this five and use the cap space to then improve the bench, this is easily a future dynasty:
1. Haliburton
2. Mathurin
3. OG/ Nesmith
4. Smith / Jackson
5. Wembanyama
Unlike the scenario you stated, Pacers can start contending immediately after drafting Victor Wembanyama.
Nah that’s fair, the only difference would firstly do Toronto want to give up OG for Turner. Last I heard they have an interest in SGA so unless they have a good amount of interest they would probably rather keep OG and deal him in a SGA deal.
Secondly you’d still have Heild so you’d need to look into dealing him but that’s not really an issue.
Thirdly you wouldnt get the luxury of future first round picks from the lakers which would have a good chance of being valuable picks.
Either way it’s not a bad idea.
Turner and Heild for Russ and picks then get Victor and get a SF in FA. Then start competing and look forward to the lakers picks.
Or trade Turner for OG, tank the rest of the season and pray you lose enough games for Victor then your roster is basically set and you’ll still have a little bit FA money to spend.
Worst thing the pacers can do is just sit as they are and end up winning to many games to get a top pick. Turner then most likely leaves for nothing in FA and it most likely adds a couple seasons onto the rebuild
Yeah, I think the Pacers would trade Hield in a separate trade after trading for OG Anunoby using Myles Turner in an extend-and-trade type scenario where Toronto has Myles Turner for the foreseeable future and does not have to worry about losing Turner in FA. He fits well with Toronto’s style of play, and I think if they can get more in terms of draft compensation and a young player from Indiana for OG, the Raptors may think about it.
After trading Hield and that OG trade, the Pacers would have a core of Haliburton, Mathurin, OG, Smith, and Jackson, which should be one of the worst teams in the East, so they should be able to tank and secure optimal odds at winning the 2023 draft lottery as discussed.
Personally, I just think the RFA market is a bit volatile, so it makes sense to trade assets to get a sure thing like OG to solve the SF position as the Pacers rather than try to sign a RFA SF. Either way, the idea is
I’m not sure if the Thunder would trade SGA, so I do not think the Raptors trading for SGA is viable right now, although things might change. I think closer to the deadline, assuming Turner agrees to an extension, I could see Toronto having interest in Myles Turner as they need a long-term C and ideally a stretch-five who can also protect the rim like Turner next to Barnes and Siakam, but we will see.
His best landing spot is whoever has the #1 pick because that will maximize his earnings.
The best fit would be a team that’s actually functional on the court, with something resembling, or at least aspiring to, a winning culture. But with the way the NBA draft works, that’s pretty much prohibited.
As such, it really doesn’t matter which of the tanking teams wins the race to the bottom and gets him. Most of the guys already on that team (players and coaches) won’t be there when he’s ready to win anyway. If history is a guide, almost none of them will be.
What would an example of a team be?
I hope the Knicks can send a bunch of picks for a shot
Nobody will trade away picks that have a serious chance of landing Wembanyama.
Last night 37 pts. He’s only 18 yrs old. Only Wilt, Kareem were as athletic at his size. As Wembanyama is now. Definitely a generational talent. Absolutely the #1 pick next yr.
But did you watch Henderson. Another great talent. He’s a big PG, strong. Very athletic and has good vision. A bigger CP3.
OKC probably lands him. Which means they will have to trade Chet……..
OKC, Spurs, Indiana, Jazz all I mean all will tank for this pick.
I believe Houston will be in the mix as well to get Wembanyama. You are correct regarding the 4 other teams but I do believe the Rockets will also be in the mix because even though the Rockets are improving, Rockets GM Rafael Stone installed a 3-year plan the moment he traded James Harden.
I am sure he would want to see that plan through to its fullest and be bad for one final year and complete the vision in Houston after drafting Jalen Green in Year 1 and then subsequently Jabari Smith Jr. in Year 2. If all works out and they win the lottery and are in the mix with the other 4 teams you mentioned (Spurs, Jazz, Pacers, and Thunder), then it can be Wembanyama in Year 3 to complete the rebuild for the Rockets. They will likely be bad for one final year in my opinion.
The French Connection creates a pathway to the spurs. Col. Parker may even angle a return to the Spurs as the coaching heir. Poetl is then flipped for a nice draft pick.