How Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama showed he’s NBA’s Steph Curry 2.0

The NBA has had eight different champions over the past eight seasons and has gone that long without any sign of a dynasty. The last franchise to flash the integral elements was the Golden State Warriors during their five consecutive trips to the NBA Finals.A new possibility announced its Monday night.A few hours after Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander received a huge ovation from the home crowd after winning his second consecutive NBA MVP award, a future MVP silenced the room, blew minds around the league and painted a fresh smile on the doors of the NBA’s New York headquarters.Kind of like Warriors superstar Stephen Curry did during the 2015 postseason.Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs stared down Gilgeous-Alexander and the defending-champion Thunder in the Western Conference finals and put them to bed in a most impressive fashion. The Spurs’ 122-115 Game 1 victory in double overtime, in front of the league’s most ferocious fans, was a resounding statement.A statement first to the Thunder, whose 24-1 start to the regular season had the team fantasizing about chasing Golden State’s record 73 wins. Pundits citing their youth and a proficient front office wondered if OKC would be the next dynasty.Two weeks later, OKC was 26-5 – with three of those losses courtesy of Wembanyama and the Spurs. That was an early-season statement for San Antonio, which posted the league’s best record over the remainder of the season.That statement pales in comparison to the one made at Paycom Center, as this was for the rest of the West and, by extension, the entire league. The previous eight champs – the Warriors, Raptors, Lakers, Bucks, Warriors, Nuggets, Celtics and Thunder – had better enjoy their rings because they’ll have to go through the Spurs to get another.Going through the Spurs means going through Wemby. The Thunder – who swept their first two playoff opponents and seem best equipped to challenge the 7-foot-4 Frenchman – failed spectacularly in Game 1.“We knew it was going to be a dog fight,” Gilgeous-Alexander told reporters in Oklahoma City. “We just got to be better. Me in particular. Got to play better, especially against a team of this caliber.”While SGA scored 24 points on 7-of-23 shooting from the field over 51 minutes, Wembanyama played 49 minutes and dropped the hammer on the Thunder.Wemby scored a game-high 41 points on 14-of-25 shooting from the field. Drained a game-tying 3-pointer from Steph range that forced the second OT. Scored 14 of San Antonio’s 21 points in the two OTs. Grabbed a game-high 24 rebounds. Blocked a game-high three shots. Discouraged at least a dozen others. At 22, he’s the youngest player to post a 40-20 playoff game.According to conventional wisdom, Wemby should not be ready own such a massive stage. He’s still in his athletic infancy, one month removed from his postseason debut. He was facing the back-to-back MVP and the team that won it all last season on its home floor.Furthermore, San Antonio is playing under a coach, Mitch Johnson, as new to this stage as Golden State’s Steve Kerr was in 2015. With veteran point guard De’Aaron Fox sidelined in Game 1, Wemby had to overcome talented but erratic young ballhandlers; Stephon Castle had 11 turnovers.And the young man who grew up an ocean away from the NBA, in the biggest game of his career, made it his stage, his arena, his time. Now.“It takes a lot of guts,” Wembanyama said. “It takes a lot of experience as well. But a game like tonight is the best way to get experience. We played five quarters. We’re learning.”Those last two words are a warning for the rest of the NBA. They’re also accurate, as San Antonio’s precocious young guards – rookie Dylan Harper, Devin Vassell and Castle – deliver the wide-eyed peril and fun of a high-speed thrill ride. Should they mature, even OKC will be looking up at the Spurs.And SGA, with his two MVP awards, will be looking up at Wembanyama, who finished third in the voting but is aiming higher. And will hit that target very soon.Asked if he took it personally that SGA won the MVP award he wanted – as his pregame and in-game expressions conveyed – Wemby’s response was cold and daring.“Yeah,” he said. “For sure. Everything you just said.“Feels like I still got a lot to learn,” he added. “And I want to get that trophy many times in my career.”That will be determined mostly by Wembanyama’s health. All things he needs and can control, he already has.The Spurs have their young Steph. The NBA has its new Steph. Someone who captivates fans, motivates teammates, dominates opponents and whose unprecedented impact makes him the envy of every franchise in the league. Someone whose presence ensures generous national-television exposure, year after year.And Wemby is polishing his star five years before Curry, who turned 27 a month before the 2015 postseason.From a marketing and promotions viewpoint, Wemby is Steph 2.0 – a foot taller, possessing gifts that can dominate on offense and defense.One fantastic game, giving the Spurs a 1-0 series lead, does not equal a championship. But it’s not too early to see what’s coming to San Antonio and the NBA. A team with the goods to becomes the next dynasty.Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast

How Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama showed he’s NBA’s Steph Curry 2.0

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