“Do You Want To Become KD”: Joel Embiid Gives Brutally Honest Advice to NBA Rookie Victor Wembanyama

Being a rookie in the NBA is not a walk in the park, and Victor Wembanyama is no exception. The 7’4″ prodigy has all the skills and talent to carve out his name in the big league, but that will not happen overnight. Joel Embiid realizes that Wemby is trying to live up to the hype, but there is still a lot of figuring out to do for the rookie.

The former MVP says, “It’s not necessarily whether he wants to be a guard or a big; it’s what he wants to become. Do you want to become KD, or do you want to become me? Not KD, or like a version of those guys — you want to combine everything. Right now, I just feel like everything kind of feels a little forced in the way that he’s playing. Which is not bad. Because the only way to get better is to play through it and learn.” Despite this, Embiid understands the heaps of pressure and expectations that Wemby is bearing.

Wemby needs to find his beat

It’s no secret that all eyes are on Wemby as he maneuvers around his rookie year; Embiid has done his homework too. “Not trying to be too critical. Obviously, extremely talented. Right now, there’s so much hype around him, I think he’s trying to live up to the hype. That’s what I see. And I watch a lot of games. I think, first of all, he has to figure out where he wants to play, whether he wants to be a guard or a big or whatever,” he says about the 19-year-old Frenchman.

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Given his size and wingspan, Wemby’s defense game is unmatched but he has been struggling on the offensive side. With an average of 18.5 points per game, he leads the Spurs in scoring, but his stats pale in comparison to the amount of hype that surrounds him and we haven’t yet seen the consistency in domination from him. Wemby is still making mistakes and learning from them, as Embiid points out.

Go easy on yourself

Embiid gives credit to the Spurs for giving Wemby ample opportunity to commit his mistakes and learn from them, but he also acknowledges that there is a flip side to that. “The bad of it is, you know, it just feels a little forced. Like, some of the shots. He can make it easy on himself. He can make it easy for himself. Like, he’s 7-5, 7-6. Sometimes, and that’s one thing I’m learning, too. Like, sometimes, just go down there and whatever, just shoot over somebody,” the Sixers‘ star says.

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The most memorable part of a player’s NBA career is usually their rookie season, and it is significant because it sets the tone for what comes next. However, adapting to the big league and sifting through the pressure and constant scrutiny is an aspect that is often overlooked. However, Wemby needs to understand that success does not come instantly and that it will take time for even the most highly anticipated rookie to turn things around for a severely struggling team.