Top Stories

Wemby Watch: Victor Wembanyama makes NBA history; unveils acting talents

The 19-year-old rookie became the youngest player to log a 20/20 game and filmed his 1st commercial in the same week.

Michael C. Wright and Michaela Gilmer

Victor Wembanyama

Victor Wembanyama became the youngest player to log a 20-point, 20-rebound game on Friday night.

Stay up to date on No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama during his rookie campaign with the San Antonio Spurs. A new Wemby Watch drops every Sunday during the season. Here’s what we saw this week.

Circle on calendar 📅

The King, a.k.a LeBron James, will take on the rookie phenom for the first time this week. The Lakers travel to San Antonio to face the Spurs in a 2-game set on Wednesday (8 ET, NBA TV) and Friday (7:30 ET, ESPN).

Stay tuned for more as we get closer to the matchup between two of league’s most anticipated No. 1 picks in history. 

One stat to know 📊

The 19-year-old rookie became the youngest player in NBA history to log a 20-point, 20-rebound game in the Spurs’ 121-112 loss to the Bulls on Friday.

Wembanyama, who finished with 21 points, 20 rebounds, four assists and four blocks, took no consolation in the milestone.  

“It doesn’t really have value in a loss,” he said. “But it is definitely an achievement. I hope I can look back at it as a good performance someday.”

The loss extended San Antonio’s losing streak to 16 games, tying a franchise record set just last season.

1-man highlight reel 🤯

In case you missed it, take a look at the Spurs rookie making history Friday night.

Praise from a former Spur 👏

All-Star guard-forward DeMar DeRozan raved about Wembanyama’s shot-blocking skills after facing off against the rookie. 

“He is going to be a scary defender,” said DeRozan, who played for the Spurs from 2018-21. “Even if he doesn’t get a hand on them, just the way he affects everybody coming down, and he’s coming out of nowhere. There’s nobody else in the league with that skill and that length. And his awareness is incredible already for being a rookie.”

Lights, camera, action 🎥

Wembanyama filmed his first commercial last week for regional grocery store H-E-B. He joins a long line of Spurs to partake in a yearly tradition that local fans have grown to love.

“This was the biggest set up,” Wembanyama said about H-E-B’s set compared to other commercials he’s shot throughout his short career. “It’s huge. Obviously, it’s funny. But it’s also part of the culture.”

Dating back to 2004, players such as Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker, David Robinson, George Gervin and Sean Elliott have all starred in H-E-B’s humorous commercials as well as former Spurs DeRozan, Kawhi Leonard and Patty Mills.

Even in retirement, Spurs legends have lent their faces to the local television spots. As for Wembanyama, he didn’t hesitate when asked whether he’s got a future as an actor.

“Yes,” he said. “Not maybe, yes.”

H-E-B hasn’t yet announced when it plans to air the commercials featuring the 19-year old rookie. But the grocery chain teased that the spots are on the way. So, stay tuned. 

In the meantime, check out some of the H-E-B spots from the past featuring Spurs favorites.

Experimenting continues 🧪

We’ve discussed San Antonio’s experiment with power forward Jeremy Sochan at point guard.

Well, coach Gregg Popovich pushed the pause button on that endeavor and introduced the club’s sixth starting lineup of the season Wednesday ahead of a 102-94 loss at Minnesota.

San Antonio started that game with Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, Zach Collins and Cedi Osman alongside Wembanyama. Then, Popovich changed the starters again for Friday, electing to go with Wembanyama at the center spot with Sochan, Johnson, Vassell and Malaki Branham.

“With this lineup, we have one big and four perimeter players,” Popovich explained before the game. “There is really no point guard.”

After the loss, Popovich said the team would “absolutely” continue moving forward to surround Wembanyama at center with four perimeter players.

Normally a forward, the rookie even opened up to the idea of playing center more often.

“Experimenting with different areas of the game is always something important and interesting to me,” he said. “Every game is different. But we are going to see and try until we find a good recipe.”

* * *

Michael C. Wright is a senior writer for NBA.com. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.

Michaela Gilmer is a producer for NBA.com.

The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its clubs or Warner Bros. Discovery.

Related

Latest