San Antonio is in a frenzy, Wembanyama warns the league: "Get ready" - voila! sport

Victor Wembanyama's performance in France (YouTube)

"Today was a good day," Victor Wembanyama tweeted shortly after 4 a.m. French time. For the city of San Antonio, for the Spurs that represent it in the NBA, for its fans and for the league as a whole, it is very possible that in the not-too-distant future this day will turn out not only to be "good," but to be historic. The Spurs received the right to select first in the 00 draft and are expected to land Wembanyama, the French talent never before seen in the sport.

After starring in the victory of his current team, Levallois Metropolitans, in the Paris derby where Kylian Mbappé came to watch, Wembanyama arrived at Nike's offices on the Champs-Élysées for a celebration of the lottery that set his destination. Even before the final result was announced, on screen he saw Adrian Wojnarowski describe him on the ESPN broadcast as "the most anticipated player entering the NBA, perhaps the greatest potential in the history of all sports."

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The frenzy in San Antonio upon learning of the results of the lottery

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"Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James have aroused such anticipation in their eras, but they looked less prepared and less mature," Wojnarowski analyzed. "I think Victor will be the best player in the NBA in two or three years, both offensively and defensively. He will change not only the fate of his team, but that of the entire league to a degree we probably haven't seen before."

It's no surprise, then, that Spurs are already rubbing their hands with pleasure ahead of the 19-year-old Frenchman, who stands at 2.23 meters and has so far displayed such a variety of abilities that it's not even clear what position he plays. Online videos showed the fans' frenzy when their team won the No. <> pick in the draft, and San Antonio officials were quick to respond. Former player Manu Ginobili was enthusiastic, guard Devin Vassell declared that "it's time," and Jeremy Sochan, who was selected by the Spurs at Luttery last year, had already begun practicing French by tweeting in Wembanyama's language: "Hello, my name is Jeremy! And to you?"

Spurs players practice French

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"Wembie's" compatriot Nicolas Batum pointed to the fact that he would be in the same city as Gregg Popovich and the greatest power forward of all time - namely Tim Duncan. Memes soon followed that the 74-year-old Popovich, for whom there were speculations that he would retire from coaching, would decide to stay for many more years for the right to coach Wembanyama.

Based on the careers of the two previous players San Antonio selected No. <> in the draft, there's another big reason for optimism: David Robinson won two championships and one MVP in the regular season, and Duncan earned five rings along with two MVP titles, both of which of course were inducted into the Hall of Fame.

"Pop ran to the airport to pick up Wemby"

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From the expressions on the faces of Wembanyama and his associates, it was clear that they too were pleased with the results of the lottery. After admitting that "the whole of France wanted the Spurs to get the first pick" because of Tony Parker and Boris Diaw's past as champions in San Antonio, the young talent was asked what the NBA should expect from him, and replied without hesitation: "I'll try to win a championship ring as soon as possible, so get ready."

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• NBA

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• San Antonio Spurs
• Victor Wembanyama