By Guillaume K. | Sports journalist
Victor Wembanyama is a talent like no other and he is treated like this by all his opponents. Defenses try to limit him and coaches rack their brains to stop him. This Monday, Rick Carlisle implemented an anti-Wemby plan in the Pacers’ victory.
When he exploded to put 38 points on the lead of Kevin Durant and the Suns, one would have thought that Victor Wembanyama had arrived in the NBA for good and that he would continue to walk on his opponents. Unfortunately, his last two outings reminded everyone that he was still young and that he would need some time to adapt to be mature.
After a solid performance with 20 points, 9 rebounds, 5 blocks and 4 assists in the defeat against the Raptors this Sunday, he was much more discreet this Monday with 13 points and 10 rebounds on the clock against Indiana. For some, the main reason behind these numbers is the reluctance of his teammates to pass him the ball in good attacking conditions. Despite all his talent, he “only” shoots 15 times per evening and is mostly forgotten in hot moments…
Rick Carlisle cash on his anti-Wemby method
But perhaps defenses are also starting to understand the Wembanyama phenomenon. If he is potentially impossible to stop, opposing coaches have the right to have good ideas to limit him. Rick Carlisle, for example, looked into the Wemby case before confronting it, and at a press conference, he returned to his own method:
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We simply wanted to put all the forces present on the ground around him. Vertical forces with our runs and horizontal forces so that he cannot pass his center of gravity in front of our defenders. If he manages to pass, he just has to put his whole arm in the basket for an easy dunk. I have never seen that. Nobody saw that.
He is only 19 years old, playing his first games in the NBA, and Victor Wembanyama is already entitled to preferential treatment from the various coaches, who know that he is the number 1 weapon in San Antonio and that he has qualities never seen in history. Rick Carlisle opted for a rather nebulous method with his vertical and horizontal forces, but the result proved him right:
This BLOCK on Wemby ???? pic.twitter.com/dyl1drgnkT
— Parlons NBA (@ParlonsNBA) November 7, 2023
Victor Wembanyama is already being targeted by every defense and coaches are racking their brains to find ways to slow him down. A huge mark of respect for such a young player, and above all a good way for him to progress.
2023-11-07 21:30:00
#Pacers #antiWemby #plan #revealed #simply #wanted
