Getty Image / Justin Ford
Victor Wembanyama somehow exceeded the incredibly high expectations people set for him as a rookie. The San Antonio Spurs center finished the year as one of the league’s best players down the stretch.
The problem is, he didn’t have much help in San Antonio. Wembanyama was good, but the rest of the Spurs were bad enough that they went 22-60 on the season.
Now, that’s a young team with some promising players like Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, and Keldon Johnson, and they will surely get better. But, if they don’t want to waste another year of Victor Wembanyama, they’ll need to significantly upgrade the roster for next year.
The Spurs are going to have assets in the form of draft picks and young players to make a move for a star to pair with Victor Wembanyama. And, if you’re a youngish star, why wouldn’t you want to team up with the 7-foot-4 cyborg? He makes everything so much easier for his teammates.
Apparently, NBA players agree with that take. Victor Wembanyama claims that guys are reaching out to him trying to find out ways to play together.
Wemby says he has received messages from NBA players and future prospects about wanting to team up.
Everyone wants to play with Wemby 👽pic.twitter.com/DePeZieA9f
— WembyMuse (@Wemby_Muse) April 18, 2024
Who could those guys be? It’s hard to say, but there are a few players that could be available this summer via trade that make sense.
The Atlanta Hawks’ Trae Young is definitely one of those players. The 25-year-old took the Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals back in 2021, but things have stalled out for him in Atlanta since. It seems likely that Atlanta wants to rebuild, and he could be on his way out.
The other big name that comes to mind is the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Donovan Mitchell. The backcourt pairing of Mitchell and Darius Garland has proved to be better in theory than practice. Mitchell has one year left on his contract, and a player option after that. He could certainly be willing to go to San Antonio and sign a huge extension.
At the end of the day, I do think the Spurs will look to pair Victor Wembanyama up with a star.
For the season, Wembanyama averaged 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 3.6 blocks per game.