For as much change phenom Victor Wembanyama has gone through throughout his rookie season, his demeanor hasn't faltered. And he gives the sense that it won't any time soon. If ever.
“It's how I try to live my life. I don't do anything halfway,” the Spurs superstar said. “If I have to do it, I want to be the best at it,”
“We have a lot of personal goals that we discuss with the players and the coaches,” Wembanyama continued when asked if there are specifics he wants to accomplish over the final three weeks of his rookie year. “There's a multitude of them but the most important is to win.”
Victor Wembanyama on working with Gregg Popovich
Following the end of Thursday's practice, Gregg Popovich stayed on the court for a bit to work individually with his star center. When asked if he enjoys the personal instruction from the Hall of Fame coach, Wembanyama didn't hesitate.
“Very much,” Wemby said. “It's not going to happen many times more until the end of the season so, yeah, every single one is important.”
At #Spurs shoot-around
Pop working with #VictorWembanyama on positioning, footwork & movement on the block.
Pop demonstrates for Wemby before having Victor run through it a couple of times. A ‘there you go’ from Pop at the end with Vic acknowledgement. ⬇️#GoSpursGo #PorVida pic.twitter.com/V0DBAPOAb5
— Hector Ledesma (@HectorLedesmaTV) March 21, 2024
Popovich has often been very complimentary of his 7-foot-4 marvel. When combined with his invaluable knowledge, Wembanyama savors every lesson from the winningest coach in NBA history.
“I think it's pretty precious and it's one of the reasons that makes this place the best place also,” the Spurs big man said. “I think I've added something out of every single one of these, even whenever I talk with coach, I add something every time.”
Continuous improvement for Wembanyama
“I would say the general knowledge of the court and the awareness, but also the patience,” the No. 1 overall pick says are his biggest areas to improve in. “Through reps, learning to recognize different types of situations as well.”
A big part of that growth includes how the generational talent has learned to handle multiple defenders thrown at him.
“It comes down to the recognition of the situation. It's mostly a team thing to take care of the double teams. If we share the ball the right way, we're going to kill the double teams.”
Finishing off strong
Wembanyama told reporters that he didn't tweak his ankle toward the end of the Spurs most recent game, a 113-107 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday.
“I was hit in the knee. It's fine. It's nothing,” Wembanyama Just a hit. It was sore the next day but nothing.”
Considering the Grizzlies, like San Antonio, won't qualify for the playoffs, Wemby considers Friday's game vs. Memphis a must win. If his team isn't victorious in five of the last 15 contests, they'll set the mark for the worst record in franchise history. The 1996-'97 squad went 20-62.
“It's very important and the whole focus is on winning these games,” the 20-year-old center admitted.” I think we've had our ups and downs in the season, but we know each other way better today. It all comes down to our personal efforts to make this work, but it's going to work.”
Work is something Wembanyama has shown he's not afraid of.
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