After Zion Williamson, the NBA is seeing another generational talent bless the league with projected first-round pick Victor Wembanyama. Notably, Victor recently named the tw0 players he looks up to the most and although great, his list turned a little controversial.
Wembanyama omitted LeBron James and Stephen Curry and proceeded with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant. Not to mention, LeBron James was once a highly recruited 18-year-old prospect like Victor. Now, fans found it quite off-putting that Victor did not take the names of two of the greatest players of our generation.
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Wembanyama is a 7’3” future prospect for the NBA. His favorite players are Giannis and KD. It is fitting that he picks the two former MVPs as his idols, as both are over 7 ft. However, NBA Twitter fans were not too happy with his choices and debated his picks.?
Notably, Bron was a runaway selection for the No. 1 pick 20 years ago in his draft class. Two decades later, the French teenager finds himself in a similar situation. In addition, he has been compared to LeBron James repeatedly and is believed to be the only lock for the first pick since James.
NBACentral tweeted out Wembanyama’s comments on Giannis and KD. And here’s how most fans reacted.
Victor Wembanyama leaves out LeBron James and Stephen Curry from his list
NBA Twitter responded to the youngster, finding it pretty criminal to not pick even one out of Stephen Curry and LeBron James as his favorite player.
Wembanyama said, “If I gotta pick two, I?d say Giannis and K.D. Those are my two favorite players.”
Here are some of the reactions NBA Twitter had to Victor’s statement:
https://twitter.com/StephGotNext4/status/1559554525630955520?s=20&t=_TJEdJCZYXyuhPbF_VuDLA
Oh geez… https://t.co/8cE18nDCmg
— Craig Cambron (@WayofCraig) August 16, 2022
Let’s just hope he turns out good. Bol Bol reminded me of those 2 and he was trash https://t.co/MQCQRUrJ6K
— KB (@RimaAfc) August 16, 2022
https://twitter.com/JR_Surg/status/1559555354421256199?s=20&t=_TJEdJCZYXyuhPbF_VuDLA
— Keeping Score Podcast (@keepingscoreNY) August 16, 2022
Leaving out LeBron and Steph is a little off-putting. The two have taken their franchises Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors, to new heights.
Is Victor Wembanyama the next LeBron?
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USAToday projects Wembanamya to go first for the Oklahoma City Thunder. This is probably their only similarity, as LeBron James went first overall for Cleveland Cavaliers. However, Victor could change the course for OKC in a similar fashion.
Victor Wembanyama sat down with @MikeCouzens & @PaulBiancardi during today's #AXEEuroTour broadcast on ESPN to discuss:
🔳His first U.S. experience
🔳Changing clubs
🔳 Playing Pro
🔳Who he thinks his NBA comp is 👀 pic.twitter.com/12VZSIijHV— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) August 15, 2022
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Victor resembles Giannis and KD in physique and wingspan. Moreover, Wembanyama is not an identical copy of LeBron James, but he expected to match the legacy of King James with whoever drafts him.