San Antonio Spurs (DR) / ESPN (DR)
By Guillaume K. | Sports journalist
While he was in excellent form, Victor Wembanyama had a little more trouble against Anthony Davis and the Lakers this Wednesday. His performance was commented on by Shannon Sharpe, and the consultant was very disappointed by his lack of aggressiveness.
After a fairly exceptional first season in the NBA, and especially after an Olympic campaign which almost ended with an exploit against Team USA, everyone was waiting for the return of Victor Wembanyama on the San Antonio side. Some experts announced him, for example, in the MVP race, which is crazy for a 20-year-old player.
But the hype quickly fell on his first matches, since the evolution of his game was not necessarily what was hoped for. In fact, he did not move closer to the circle to show off his 2m24 and his technique, quite the contrary. He decided to move away and take more than 9 3-point shots per game, all with a skill that varies from one evening to the next.
Shannon Sharpe tackle Victor Wembanyama
And this is something that tends to annoy observers. When he gets into it, he happily dominates the debates. On the other hand, when success eludes him, they would like to see him get closer to the basket to gain confidence and have easy opportunities. This is notably the opinion of Shannon Sharpe, who expressed herself on her YouTube channel after the defeat of the Spurs against the Lakers.
Victor Wembanyama is going to be excellent. A guy this big who can move easily, who can shoot 3-pointers… But seriously, he’s 2m24 tall and he didn’t shoot a single free throw against the Lakers! 0?! It’s not a trigger. Steph Curry is one, Damian Lillard is one, Klay Thompson is one. When you’re that big you have to go under the basket. Either you’re going to have shots or your percentages are going to go up.
That’s my problem with him. If you defend Steph Curry’s outside shot well, he will attack the basket and use his nice floater. Trae Young is the same. You have to have the full arsenal, you have to do more than just one thing to be great in this league. He is expected to be a great player in this sport. Not taking a single cast shows me he was too far out.
Due to his size, Victor Wembanyama has a glaring advantage over all defenders in the league. If he spent more time in the paint, he would undoubtedly be among the players who go to the free throw line the most and his points average would automatically increase. Shannon Sharpe would like to see him in this more complete register, because even Stephen Curry knows how to attack the basket.
Shannon Sharpe would have liked to see Victor Wembanyama closer to the circle during the clash against the Lakers. Not shooting a single free throw for a 2m24 player is a bit of a stain, especially since he wasn’t successful off the field.
