The battle between the rookie and vet, as they call it, was tonight?s highlight. The footprint center was echoing with hoo?s and haa?s after the No. 1 draft pick went full-throttle against the veteran. Although the results seemed predictable by the end of the second quarter, Victor did outperform the parameters set by him in his debut game.
With a marginal win of 114-115, the San Antonio Spurs are now standing at 2-2 in the league. Not only that, Wemby set the records straight for those claiming his preseason success to be mere luck.
Victor Wembanyama against idol Durant
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It?s an open secret that ?The Alien? is a die-hard fan of the small forward playing for the Phoenix Suns. Victor Wembanyama used to rewatch the game tapes of Kevin Durant for hours and hours back in France to prune his skills like the 2X NBA Finals MVP. Studying the player for 10 years straight and then playing against him definitely wasn?t an easy task.
Read more: Touted ?7?4 Kevin Durant?, Victor Wembanyama Gets First Taste of the Real ?Slim Reaper?
However, Wemby does understand that the idols can become rivals on the court. The same response was recorded in the post-game media interaction. When asked about how he felt about the fact that he was head-to-head with ?The Slim Reaper?, Wemby made a statement.
“It’s special… he is one of the hardest players to guard in the league.”
-Wemby on KD after playing him for the first time pic.twitter.com/E8Ohp1pYFS
? NBA (@NBA) November 1, 2023
The 7?4 Frenchman said, ?Really, really a problem, and I can see that. His teammates really look for him, and, you know, they make a problem too. You know the way they set up the plays and they try to look for him. So, definitely, I think, it?s the top hardest player to guard in the league.”
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Although Durant dominated the game for most of the quarters, the 19-year-old rookie did answer back. The Phoenix Suns were leading the match until the first half, with 27-18 in the first quarter and 36-27 in the second one. However, the game nearly got inverted, with the Spurs catching up to the lead in the third quarter. By the end of the fourth quarter (33-19), the Spurs were leading by one point. It turns out that the pupil has learned a lot from just watching the tapes.
Victor has another face-off this Thursday
This rivalry could turn into a well-structured news piece for the media houses in the future. Considering the elegant skills demonstrated by the 8-foot wing of the 7?4 center and Durant’s defense, the games are going to be nerve-wracking for the fans.
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With the next battle scheduled for this Thursday, be ready with your popcorn buckets and stadium passes. For more updates on NBA rumors and gossip, stay tuned.
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