Victor Wembanyama Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Victor Wembanyama Won’t Play In World Cup

June 26th, 2023 at 7:53am CST by Arthur Hill

Victor Wembanyama has changed his mind about representing France in the FIBA World Cup this summer, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. The No. 1 pick in this year’s draft made the announcement in an interview with the French newspaper L’Equipe, saying he plans to focus on getting ready for his rookie season with the Spurs.

“It would not be realistic in terms of development and not prudent in terms of health,” Wembanyama said. “I hope people will understand. It’s frustrating for me, too. The France team is still central for me. I want to win as many titles as possible with the team. But I think it’s a necessary sacrifice.”

Wembanyama indicated that the World Cup would have been too much to add to his schedule after leading his Metropolitans 92 team to the French League finals, a series that didn’t end until June 15. He traveled to New York for last week’s draft, then boarded a plane to San Antonio, where he was introduced at a press conference Saturday afternoon.

Wembanyama intends to play for France in the 2024 Olympics, which means a full summer of basketball after his rookie season concludes. After 62 games with Metropolitans and possibly 82 in the NBA – or more if the Spurs reach the postseason – the 7’4″ power forward determined that he might be subjecting himself to approximately 170 games within 24 months if he participates in the World Cup as well.

Wembanyama still plans to be active for at least some of San Antonio’s Summer League games. The Spurs will take part in the California Classic beginning next Monday before moving on to the Las Vegas league. He said the team would have supported his decision whether he played in the World Cup or not, adding that he chose to sit out after talking to his personal medical staff.

France won the silver medal in the most recent Olympics and was considered among the favorites in the World Cup. The tournament will take place from Aug. 25 to Sept. 10 in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.

Spurs Notes: Wembanyama, Cissoko, Draft-Night Trade, Popovich

June 24th, 2023 at 6:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

Saturday’s “Meet the Rookies” news conference in San Antonio was more like a party than a routine press event, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. Roughly a hundred Spurs staff members joined some current players and a few franchise legends to get a glimpse of Victor Wembanyama, who was making his first official public appearance in the city.

“We have never seen anything like him before,” Manu Ginoblili said, “but we have to see how it all translates.”

Wembanyama joined Ginobili, Tim Duncan, David Robinson, Sean Elliott and coach Gregg Popovich for an exclusive dinner Friday night. That came a few hours after the French big man was welcomed at the airport by thousands of Spurs fans who are counting on him to lead the team back to title contention.

“The last 72 hours have been tiring, but I’m really enjoying the moment,” Wembanyama told reporters today. “I’ve been welcomed warmly. It’s just really comfortable.”

There’s more from San Antonio:

Second-round pick Sidy Cissoko also spoke at the press conference and said he can help the Spurs no matter how they decide to use him, per Tom Orsborn of The Express-News. The 19-year-old Frenchman played against Wembanyama while growing up before spending this season with the G League Ignite. “I can do kind of everything on the court and be as versatile as I can to help the team win,” Cissoko said. “If they want me to play the four, I can play the four. If they want me to play the one, I can play the one. Each position comes to me. Just anything to help us win in the end.”
Before selecting Cissoko, the Spurs made a trade with the Timberwolves, moving down from the 33rd pick to No. 44, Orsborn notes in a separate story. San Antonio took Leonard Miller for Minnesota and picked up two future second-round picks. “When the deal came about where we could move 33 for two picks out in the future, we thought that was a good opportunity for us,” general manager Brian Wright said. “… We were ecstatic (Cissoko) was there. He was someone we were considering if we had stayed at 33, so to get him at 44, we thought that was great.”
In the same piece, Popovich reflects on the good fortune that has allowed him to coach another overall No. 1 pick after winning multiple titles with Robinson and Duncan. “Certainly there is enough that’s happened in this organization that makes one wonder why we’ve been the recipients of so much serendipity for sure,” he said. “Of course, there’s no answer to that. I would just relate to you that we’ve mentioned many times in the past couple of decades and a half, I guess, when things weren’t going well and somebody showed some sympathy and empathy. We would just laugh and go, ‘Why? Why do we deserve that?’”

Spurs Draft Victor Wembanyama With No. 1 Pick

June 22nd, 2023 at 7:11pm CST by Luke Adams

In a move that has been expected since the moment they won the draft lottery last month, the Spurs have officially used the first overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft to select French big man Victor Wembanyama.

Wembanyama, 19, is widely considered to be the best NBA prospect since LeBron James entered the league 20 years ago.

The 7’5″ phenom averaged 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 3.0 blocks per game in 34 appearances (32.1 MPG) for the Metropolitans 92 in France’s top league (LNB Pro A) in 2022/23, becoming the youngest MVP in LNB history and cementing his place atop this year’s NBA draft class.

A potential rim-blocking anchor on defense, Wembanyama also projects to be a dynamic multi-level scorer on offense. He made just 27.5% of his three-pointers in France this past season, but showed a willingness to let it fly from beyond the arc (5.0 attempts per game) and made 82.8% of his free throws, which is a promising sign for his developing outside shot.

Wembanyama will join a young Spurs core that includes 2022 lottery pick Jeremy Sochan and former first-rounders Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell. The team also possesses multiple second-round picks in tonight’s draft and projects to have a significant chunk of cap room available this offseason as it begins the process of building around Wembanyama.

The Metropolitans’ season ended just a week ago and Wembanyama hopes to represent France in the World Cup beginning in late August, so there was a belief that the Spurs might hold him out of Summer League play this July. However, he told reporters on Wednesday that he plans to participate, which means it may just be a matter of weeks before we may get our first look at him in action as a Spur.

Draft Rumors: Miller, Hornets, Blazers, Pacers, Magic, More

June 21st, 2023 at 8:44pm CST by Rory Maher

The Hornets appear to be leaning toward selecting Alabama’s Brandon Miller with the second overall pick in tomorrow night’s draft, according to reports from Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link via ClutchPoints), Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link), Jeremy Woo of ESPN (Insider link) and Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

Wojnarowski, Givony, and Woo have all heard from sources who say Miller performed much better in his second workout on Monday in front of Hornets brass, including owner Michael Jordan. Wojnarowski goes so far as to say Miller “further solidified his standing as Charlotte’s choice at No. 2.”

For his part, Miller said in a SiriusXM NBA Radio interview (Twitter video link) that he didn’t feel intimidated by working out in front of Jordan, noting that he didn’t grow up watching the Hall of Famer. He also said he had a “fun time” exchanging verbal jabs with Jordan.

Here are more rumors on the draft, which is less than 24 hours away:

It would take a “significant return” for the Trail Blazers to part with the No. 3 pick in a draft that many view as having a consensus top-three prospects, but they’ll continue to listen to offers up until it’s time to make a selection, Wojnarowski said on ESPN’s NBA Today (YouTube link). “Certainly, they want to build around Damian Lillard, Wojnarowski said, per RealGM. “That’s been their focus. Damian Lillard says he wants to continue to be in Portland. So I think they’ll go right up to the clock on Thursday night. Offers and outreach from teams tend to get more serious the closer you get to the deadline…Portland may not have gotten the best offers that will come to them, but they will here in the next 24 hours or so. This is a significant decision for this organization, for Damian Lillard’s future in Portland.” If Miller gets picked No. 2, the Blazers would almost certainly select Scoot Henderson, Woj added.
Fischer confirms a recent report that the Spurs are inquiring about adding a second lottery pick and have been linked to French wing Bilal Coulibaly, who played with projected No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama on Metropolitans 92. Interestingly, sources tell Woo that Coulibaly hasn’t unilaterally granted access to his medical details, indicating he may have a preferred destination in mind.
Cam Whitmore‘s stock may be falling due to medical concerns, sources tell Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report, who has Whitmore going No. 9 to the Jazz in his latest mock draft. Whitmore had been viewed as an option for the Rockets (No. 4) or Pistons (No. 5).
Although Ausar Thompson canceled a workout with the Pacers (No. 7) last week, he still had a meeting with team officials, he told Fischer. Indiana sent a “select group” of personnel to Atlanta to meet with Thompson over the weekend, Fischer writes.
Anthony Black‘s camp “initially showed resistance” to the idea of working out for Orlando due to the Magic‘s guard depth, sources tell Fischer. However, he wound up leaving a strong impression on the team and now thinks he could be picked No. 6 overall, he told Fischer. If the Magic do pick a guard, they’ve given rivals the impression they’d consider trading Cole Anthony, who has a “great relationship” with the front office, or Jalen Suggs. “They didn’t tell me that,” Black said, “but that’s what I figured they’d do if they picked me.”
The Lakers have been exploring all kinds of options with their first-round pick (No. 17), including possibly moving up a few slots, Fischer writes. Keyonte George could be a target — the guard has also been linked to the Raptors at No. 13, per Fischer.
According to Fischer, Jarace Walker believes he could go as high as No. 5 (Pistons), with a floor possibly being Indiana (No. 7); Taylor Hendricks believes he could go anywhere from No. 5 to No. 12 (Thunder); and Dereck Lively II has been told he could be picked anywhere from No. 10 (Dallas) to No. 20 (Houston).

Spurs Rumors: Wembanyama, Vassell, Johnson, Draft

June 21st, 2023 at 2:56pm CST by Luke Adams

While a previous report indicated that Victor Wembanyama likely wouldn’t play in Summer League games this July, he told reporters on Wednesday that he plans to do so, as Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press relays (via Twitter).

The Spurs and Wembanyama will likely sort out the specifics after he’s officially drafted on Thursday, but LJ Ellis of Spurs Talk gets the sense that the team will probably allow the big man to suit up if he wants to.

As Ellis explains, while the Spurs will likely want to be as cautious as possible with a player they expect to build their franchise around for the foreseeable future, Wembanyama takes pride in his availability and has conveyed that he wants to play as much as possible after not missing a single game in France this past season. That means he’ll want to take part in Summer League and this year’s World Cup before aiming to play all 82 games as a rookie.

While the Spurs won’t want to push Wembanyama too hard as he adjusts to the more rigorous NBA schedule next season, it sounds like they won’t stand in the way of him playing for France in the World Cup, Ellis writes.

Here’s more on the Spurs:

San Antonio is open to the idea of hiring some of the personal trainers that have worked with Wembanyama and kept him healthy so far in his professional career, according to Ellis. Those discussions are expected to begin after he’s officially drafted on Thursday.
The Spurs don’t appear inclined to offer Devin Vassell or Keldon Johnson as they continue to look into acquiring an additional 2023 first-round pick, according to Ellis. General manager Brian Wright said as much earlier this week. However, the club has made future draft assets available in an effort to land a second lottery selection, Ellis writes, adding that Anthony Black, Kobe Bufkin, and Bilal Coulibaly have been cited most often as possible San Antonio targets.
A scout previously suggested to Ellis that the Spurs may pursue a veteran point guard like Fred VanVleet or Chris Paul this offseason, but a team source essentially shot down that idea. “The plan is to avoid big, costly mistakes and to slowly build this thing out,” the source told Ellis. “See what you have first, see what you need, see what can be grown organically and go from there.”

Draft Notes: Nuggets, Appleby, Wembanyama, Tshiebwe, Dick, Clippers

June 19th, 2023 at 10:48pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nuggets agreed to a draft-pick trade with the Thunder during the Finals, acquiring this year’s No. 37 selection, the least favorable of the Thunder’s 2024 first-round picks, and a 2024 second-rounder in exchange for a 2029 first-round pick. They are continuing to look to add a first-round pick in this year’s draft, Mike Singer of the Denver Post tweets, using the 2024 first-round pick they received from Oklahoma City as bait.

With salary-cap concerns, Denver is trying to add low-cost options to round out its bench as it pursues a repeat. In another draft-related development, the Nuggets will work out Wake Forest point guard Tyree Appleby on Tuesday, Singer reports in another tweet.

We have more updates with the draft approaching on Thursday:

Victor Wembanyama, a mortal lock to be the first player off the board, has arrived in the United States from France, Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press reports. He flew into Newark (N.J.) Airport on Monday. Wembanyama has a scheduled pre-draft media session on Wednesday before the Spurs officially secure his services on Thursday night.
Kentucky star forward Oscar Tshiebwe has been one of the busiest prospects over the past month. He’s finishing up his workout schedule by visiting the Cavaliers and Celtics, Adam Zagoria tweets. Tshiebwe’s visit with Boston’s brass will be his second there. He has worked out for approximately half the teams in the league.
Kansas wing Gradey Dick, who is projected to go in the second half in the lottery, told The Athletic’s Shams Charania that he will be a team player wherever he winds up (Twitter link). “I’m going to go into any organization, any city, and really just buy into the team. I’m the type of player where I honestly don’t care what my role is,” Dick said.
The Clippers’ staff had a busy Monday, evaluating 10 prospects in two separate workouts, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times tweets. The visitors included Tyger Campbell (UCLA), Mouhamed Gueye (Washington State) Seth Lundy (Penn State), Nathan Mensah (San Diego State), Mike Miles (TCU), Omari Moore, (San Jose State), Julian Phillips (Tennessee), Ben Sheppard (Belmont), Grant Sherfield (Oklahoma) and Jordan Walsh (Arkansas).

Southwest Notes: Wembanyama, Williamson, Ingram, Jones

June 18th, 2023 at 8:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Spurs are hopeful that Victor Wembanyama will participate to some degree in the Las Vegas Summer League, Marc Stein writes in a Substack post.

A previous report suggested Wembanyama would likely only practice with the Summer League team, as the Spurs want to give him some time off from competitive action following his French league season. It’s unclear if Stein is suggesting that Wembanyama might see some game action after all.

Wembanyama will be the top pick in the draft on Thursday after the Spurs won the lottery. They are scheduled to play in Sacramento’s California Classic summer league July 3-5 before heading to Las Vegas.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

While rumors have been flying that the Pelicans might consider dealing Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram this offseason, Rod Walker of the New Orleans Times-Picayune believes the franchise would be better off holding onto them and hoping for better results next season. While the team reportedly has interest in trading up in the draft to select G League guard Scoot Henderson, the Pelicans with Williamson and Ingram are better than they would be with either the Henderson/Williamson or the Henderson/Ingram combo, Walker opines.
Ja Morant‘s 25-game suspension makes it a tougher decision for the Grizzlies to trade backup point guard Tyus Jones for help on the wing, Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal opines. If the Grizzlies trade Jones, they’ll have to find another starting point guard to hold them over until Morant’s suspension ends. However, finding an upgrade at small forward will be more difficult if they hold onto Jones, who has one year left on his contract. Even if they keep Jones, they still need more depth at guard.
In case you missed it, the Rockets might make a strong run at free agent point guard Fred VanVleet.

And-Ones: Terry, Doncic, Tatum, Wembanyama, Selden

June 18th, 2023 at 3:34pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Former Mavericks point guard Tyrell Terry, who retired from basketball after just two seasons due to mental health reasons, explained his decision more thoroughly during an interview with Chip Scoggins of The Star Tribune.

The 22-year-old, selected with the No. 31 pick out of Stanford, is back in school following his brief pro stint, now majoring in Science, Technology and Society. Terry’s issues trying to gain weight at the next level prevented him from having the kind of on-court success he had enjoyed at the NCAA level.

“On a daily basis I was trying to convince myself that I loved basketball,” Terry said. “Trying to convince myself that people’s opinions didn’t matter. It became a game of trying to convince myself of something that I didn’t believe in. I realized that’s not how I want to live my life. It was like I was damaging myself.”

Terry took a two-month personal leave from the team during his rookie season in an effort to deal with persistent anxiety attacks. He also consulted with Dallas’ team therapist. The following year, he and his team eventually coordinated his release from the roster in training camp.

There’s more from around the basketball universe:

Young All-NBA stars Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum have both experienced significant team success during their early years in the league, but have yet to win the ultimate prize. Jared Weiss and Tim Cato of The Athletic examine the very divergent approaches their respective clubs, the Mavericks and Celtics, have taken to their offseasons in years past, and project what it could mean for the two players’ present and future.
Expected No. 1 draft pick Victor Wembanyama has officially concluded his run with Metropolitans 92, as Tim Bontemps of ESPN details. Wembanyama and his French team fell 92-85 in the third game of their league’s title series to Monaco, a club loaded with ex-NBA players like Mike James, Elie Okobo, Jordan Loyd and Donatas Motiejunas. Wembanyama, the French League MVP, recorded 22 points, seven boards and four blocks in the loss.
Former NBA shooting guard Wayne Selden is joining Puerto Rican club Gigantes de Carolina, reports Dario Skerletic of Sportando. After going undrafted out of Kansas in 2016, the 6’4″ swingman enjoyed stints with the Pelicans, Grizzlies, Bulls, and Knicks, as well as several NBAGL clubs. After first dipping a toe into the international game with Israeli club Ironi Ness Ziona in 2020, Selden ditched the league for good in 2022. He has since played in Turkey, Italy, and Philippines.

Draft Notes: Wembanyama, Coulibaly, Lewis, Clowney

June 18th, 2023 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Although Victor Wembanyama may be the best NBA draft prospect in 20 years, the Spurs understand that his body type carries a certain amount of injury risk, writes Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. McDonald notes that foot injuries have interrupted or even ended the careers of numerous big men, such as Bill Walton, Yao Ming, Arvydas Sabonis and Greg Oden. The latest example is Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren, who suffered a foot fracture in an exhibition game last summer that forced him to miss his entire first season.

Wembanyama possesses an agility that has rarely been seen in someone so tall, and he has a team of advisors who have created a specialized training regimen to help him avoid stress injuries. Their prescription includes an all-natural diet with five meals each day, along with 10 hours of sleep.

“When you talk about a generational talent, it often times goes beyond your ability to make a shot or your ability to jump or put the ball on the floor,” Spurs general manager Brian Wright said. “As we’ve studied Victor, he’s very in depth with everything he does. It’s all those little details that go into becoming great.”

There’s more draft news to pass along:

Wembanyama is advocating for his French teammate, Bilal Coulibaly, to be selected in the lottery, relays NBA reporter Esfandiar Baraheni (Twitter link). “When I see the top 10 prospects announced at the draft, and for example the twins, Amen and Ausar Thompson, whose profile is similar to Bilal’s,” Wembanyama said, “I tell myself, very factually, that if these players are announced in the first five picks while playing in a league, Overtime Elite, whose level is light years away from what we experience here, then Bilal must be at least a top five.”
Pepperdine’s Maxwell Lewis, who worked out for the Trail Blazers on Thursday, views himself as a definite first-round pick, per Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian. “In my opinion, after just being in this environment, I feel like I’m a top-20 guy,” Lewis said. “We’ll see. Sky’s the limit.”
Alabama’s Noah Clowney is the 20th player to receive a Green Room invitation for draft night, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link).
Washington State guard Justin Powell has upcoming workouts scheduled with the Rockets and Nets, tweets Adam Zagoria of NJ.com.
The Hornets are hosting six players on Sunday for a pre-draft workout (Twitter link). They are Kam’Ron Blue of Coppin State, GG Jackson of South Carolina, Terry Roberts of Georgia, Vincent Valerio-Bodon of Sopron KC, Jalen Wilson of Kansas and Isaiah Wong of Miami.

Spurs Rumors: Popovich, Wembanyama, Draft, Jones, PGs

June 14th, 2023 at 1:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Longtime Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich doesn’t yet have a contract for the 2023/24 season, but the team is operating as if he’ll return, and there’s a sense that the impending addition of French phenom Victor Wembanyama may inspire him to stick around for longer than just one more year, writes LJ Ellis of SpursTalk.com.

According to Ellis, a team source says there’s an expectation that Popovich will sign a three-year contract worth approximately $14MM per year. That would presumably make him the NBA’s highest-paid head coach in terms of annual salary, edging out Monty Williams‘ new deal with Detroit.

Here’s more from Ellis on the Spurs:

Ellis hears from a team source that Wembanyama is unlikely to play for the Spurs during either of July’s Summer Leagues (Sacramento or Las Vegas). Although the No. 1 pick may practice with the team, San Antonio wants to give him some time off from competitive action, since he has played into June in the LNB Pro A playoffs and hopes to suit up for France in the World Cup in August and September.
The Spurs, who control the 33rd and 44th overall picks in addition to No. 1, are active in draft-related trade talks, Ellis reports, adding that the club would like to acquire another first-round pick. Whether or not they land another first-rounder, the Spurs are unlikely to keep and use both of their second-rounders, Ellis says.
Popovich has conveyed a “strong preference” that San Antonio retains restricted free agent guard Tre Jones this offseason, according to Ellis, who says the head coach likes Jones’ competitiveness and what he brings to the locker room.
A scout for a Western Conference team believes the Spurs will be in the market for a veteran point guard this summer, identifying Chris Paul and Fred VanVleet as possible targets, Ellis says. While it would be a bit of a surprise if San Antonio spends big on a free agent, Wembanyama could certainly benefit from teaming up with a reliable play-maker.