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Leading up to the San Antonio Spurs blockbuster deal for De'Aaron Fox, reports buzzed that the Spurs were in trade talks for the Sacramento Kings star. Though the chatter raised to noise at various times leading up to Sunday, Victor Wembanyama maintained a stoic demeanor publicly.
“I trust the front office,” Wembanyama said . “[I] stay in my role as [a] player.”
While it sounds like the company line, to have been around Wembanyama for a good period of time is to know he genuinely believes in the Spurs organization.
“Every team has made trades in their history and we know for sure it's bound to happen one day,” the 7-foot-5 phenom added.
Victor Wembanyama shares thoughts on realities of trades
Wembanyama didn't play in the Spurs game on Saturday, a 105-103 loss to the Miami Heat. The night before he shared general thoughts on rumors that indicated the Spurs and Kings were in talks about a trade.
Reports indicated that Sacramento coveted San Antonio standout rookie Stephon Castle. The national champion from UConn was recently named of the NBA's Rising Stars for All-Star Weekend. Spurs second leading scorer Devin Vassell was also said to be a potential piece of the puzzle. The team's longest tenured player, Keldon Johnson's name is just about always thrown in any time the Spurs have been mentioned in trade talks over the last couple of years.
Though several other Silver and Black players and assets (draft picks) were rumored to be in the mix, Wemby didn't get into any specifics, nor was he asked about any particular players while discussing the topic. At least, not in English.
Had he had been asked about a particular teammate, his answer probably would've sounded the same though.
“Of course, it's something that's going to happen one day for sure,” Wembanyama said. “As players, we need to anticipate how to approach it too.”
Between when related reports initially surfaced and when news of the trade broke, conversations appeared to have slowed down. In the end, the Spurs dealt seven of the draft picks they'd compiled over the last several years, including four first rounders through 2031. They also parted ways with back-up point guard Tre Jones, reserve Zach Collins and two-way player Cissoko.
“It's kind of crazy,” the Spurs leading scorer answered before the deal when asked about player movement.
Seeing teammates leave is not something Wemby had experienced much through his first year and half in the NBA.
“I think we had one trade last year during the season and we didn't get anybody.”
For general thoughts and answers that, frankly, are what teams want their stars to utter, Wembanyama didn't shy away from moments of honesty either.
“It's still something hard to realize that you can be traded kind of like an object,” the 21-year-old admitted. “It's super weird. It's not something that I've had to live through, being traded or having a lot of teammates traded. It's something that's bound to happen.”
Not for Wembanyama. Not anytime soon. In several ways, there are several reasons to trust his front office.
