I know this may seem a bit premature, but is Victor Wembanyama currently the best player in the NBA? If you say no, that’s understandable. He’s young—only 21 years old—and is just in his second year in the league. He hasn’t even reached the playoffs yet and has no accolades aside from being the unanimous 2024 NBA Rookie of the Year and making the 2024 All-Defensive First Team. You might be making a bold statement to suggest that a player with just two years of experience is better than established stars like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, and other veterans who have accomplished much more than the San Antonio Spurs’ French phenom. However, if you believe that Wemby is currently the best player in the NBA, you might have a legitimate argument.
If you look past the stats, just from a physical standpoint, Wembanyama looks like the best player in the NBA. His peers describe his athletic build as alien-like. At 7 feet 4 inches tall and 235 pounds, he has an 8-foot wingspan. Typically, players with such measurements cannot move as he does. He’s built like Rudy Gobert but moves and has the same skill set as Kevin Durant.
With a build and skill set like his, you might expect him to be unstoppable. While he may not be there yet, he’s not far from it. In his second NBA season, Wemby is averaging 25.9 points, 10.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.9 blocks, and 1 steal per game, while shooting 35.5 percent from the 3-point line. He scored 50 points in a single game and had his signature performance at Madison Square Garden, where he recorded 42 points, 18 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 blocks.
In his first 100 games, he accumulated 2,273 points, more than LeBron James’ 2,181 points and Kevin Durant’s 2,060 points. With his point total, he became the seventh player in the last 45 years to have that many points through his first 100 games, joining Michael Jordan (2,721), Zion Williamson (2,524), David Robinson (2,476), Shaquille O’Neal (2,427), Luka Doncic (2,332) and Terry Cummings (2,305).
His 225 three-pointers rank 11th-most through 100 games in NBA history, surpassing Stephen Curry’s 200 and Klay Thompson’s 204.
With 366 total blocks, Wembanyama has more blocks than Dikembe Mutombo (309) and Hakeem Olajuwon (271). Since blocks became an official statistic in the 1971-72 season, only two players have recorded more blocks in their first 100 games than Wembanyama. Manute Bol holds the record with 425 blocks, followed by David Robinson with 383.
Wemby has recorded 386 assists in his first 100 games. While many players have achieved more assists, not many centers have. Only two 7-foot centers have recorded an impressive number of assists in their first 100 games: Bill Walton and Brad Daugherty. Walton, whose height was often cited as being between 6-foot-11 and 7-foot-1 during his playing career, achieved 440 assists. Daugherty, who is 7 feet, recorded 398 assists in the same number of games.
Let’s examine Victor Wembanyama’s performance compared to notable peers.
In matchups against LeBron James, Wembanyama has averaged 22.0 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists over four games. Against Kevin Durant, he recorded averages of 21.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.5 assists across another four games.
In a single matchup against Giannis Antetokounmpo, Wembanyama stood out with an impressive average of 27.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 5.0 blocks. His performance against Stephen Curry included an average of 26.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 6.0 assists over three games.
When facing Jayson Tatum, Wembanyama averaged 24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists across two games. Finally, in 5 games against Nikola Jokić, he’s averaging 26.2 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 4.2 assists.
Overall, Wembanyama has played well when competing against most of the elite players in the NBA.
In his most recent game against the Denver Nuggets, Joker spoke highly of Vicotr’s improvement from last year to this year.
“I think he’s better this year than last year, and I think he’s going to get even better,” said Jokic, the three-time MVP and NBA Champion, of Wembanyama. “I think he’s a special player. I think he’s one of a kind and is going to be remembered forever.” Wemby finished with 33 points and 18 rebounds in their 113-110 win.
Nikola Jokic isn’t the only player who speaks highly of the 7-foot-4 superstar, Victor Wembanyama. After the Christmas game against the New York Knicks, during which Wembanyama scored 42 points despite the team’s loss, Knicks star Mikal Bridges praised him for his impressive performance.
“Wemby [Victor Wembanyama] – he is a threat at all times,” said Bridges “He is just unbelievable. To see what he is doing is just a credit to him and the work he does.”
Lakers’ star and NBA All-Time leading scorer LeBron James said that the sky is the limit for Wemanyama.
“He doesn’t have a ceiling,” James said of Wembanyama. “He can do whatever he wants to do in his career. It seems like he enjoys the game. It seems like he puts the work in, just from the outside looking in. … I said a long time ago how special he was, and it’s really that simple.”
Victor Wembanyama has been performing at an exceptionally high level, earning him a spot in the top five of the MVP ladder as ranked by NBA.com.
“Massive leap by the second-year center over the last few weeks, punctuated by his tremendous Christmas game in New York,” wrote Shaun Powell of NBA.com “In December he became the first player in NBA history to compile 300 points, 100 rebounds, 50 blocks, 50 assists and 40 three-pointers in a calendar month. Wemby is also a strong candidate for Kia Defensive Player of the Year. He’s leading the league in blocks, more than a full block over Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler.” So yes, it is premature to call Victor the best player in the NBA right now, but it’s clear to see that if he keeps this play up, there will be no doubt he’ll be the best player in the league. Right now, the Spurs are sitting at 18-16 and hold the eighth spot in a competitive Western Conference, so if he wants to make his case as the absolute best player, he’s got to rack up some wins to go along with his impressive numbers. We’ll see what the future holds for the French phenom.
