If there were any doubts as to why Victor Wembanyama should be the consensus number one pick in the 2023 NBA draft, maybe $500 million will change your mind.

Even if Wembanyama hasn't even stepped foot on an NBA court, the hype around the 19-year-old prodigy has been insane, and he's received a lot of praise from some of the league's top players. LeBron James dubbed him an “alien.” Giannis Antetokounmpo thinks he's Kevin Durant and Rudy Gobert morphed into one, per Sportskeeda. Meanwhile, Stephen Curry called him a “2k create a player” cheat code.

Once you check any of his highlights, you'd agree with any of their assessments, or you might even go the Magic Johnson route and call him the player who'll singlehandedly change the league forever. After all, there's never been a player in the NBA who's 7 foot 4 inches tall with an 8-foot wingspan and can dribble, shoot, and score at all three levels like we've seen him do.

What makes Victor Wembanyama even scarier is, he's barely even touched the surface of his potential. There's no doubt he'll change the trajectory of any NBA franchise, and Adrian Wojnarowski (Woj) said on ESPN's NBA Countdown a few months ago that one team president told him that he'll add as much as $500 million to the value of any NBA team.

How Victor Wembanyama can make a team $500 million

Woj's claim shouldn't come as much of a surprise, especially when you take a look at the other player who was arguably just as hyped as Victor Wembanyama was before he made the NBA – LeBron James.

Before LeBron joined the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003, the team was valued at a modest $222 million (sixth lowest in the league). After six years, the Cavaliers' value increased by more than 100%, and was one of the four highest-valued teams in the NBA at $476 million. Once LeBron took his talents to South Beach, the Cavs' value dipped by $121 million. However, when he returned in 2015, their value doubled in a year. More revenue comes in whenever your team is the hottest ticket in town. There's more potential for brand sponsorships, TV deals, and a spike in attendance rates.

As one Western Conference executive told Jonathan Givony of ESPN on potentially missing out on Victor Wembanyama:

“We’re going to all regret not tanking every game to get this dude.”  

No wonder some teams were trying so hard to be so bad this season.