Jamal Crawford's shocking Victor Wembanyama revelation will terrify NBA
10/25/2024 10:02 AM
The San Antonio Spurs are on their way to building the NBA’s next great powerhouse, their opening night loss to the Dallas Mavericks notwithstanding. And at the heart of their effort to return to their contending ways is Victor Wembanyama, who made plenty of history during his rookie season and is now poised to have a big sophomore year even though it wasn’t quite apparent with the way he shot the ball on Thursday night.
In particular, Jamal Crawford, who worked with Wembanyama over the offseason, has high hopes for the Spurs star, especially with the way he wants to learn from those who have come before him and with the way he absorbs information from veteran leaders.
“Oh my god, he’s a sponge. He’s the most mature 20-year-old that I’ve ever talked to in my life. Like wise beyond his years. Like how he thinks, how he sees the game. Stuff it took me years to learn, he picked it up in minutes. And I haven’t said this so I’m going to say this. It will go down as one of the five greatest basketball experiences I’ve ever had, working with him, when all is said and done,” Crawford said in an appearance on the latest episode of the Knuckleheads Podcast.
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Victor Wembanyama knows that he’s ticketed for greatness, and he certainly has the talent to push him to the top of the NBA’s totem pole. But putting in the work is more than half the battle, and Crawford’s rave review of Wembanyama’s work ethic and humility when it comes to listening to veterans should be music to the ears of Spurs fans.
The Spurs star is perhaps the most unique player in the history of the NBA. There aren’t any players who can do what he does at his size. And whatever he learned from Crawford should be icing on the cake, especially if he absorbs even just 10 percent of the ballhandling skills that JCrossover had during his heyday.
Victor Wembanyama suffers through rough season debut in Spurs loss
Similar to the start of his rookie campaign, Victor Wembanyama did not find life against the Mavericks to be too smooth-sailing. The Mavericks are the rare team with someone who can make life difficult for Wembanyama, with Dereck Lively II getting the upper hand yet again over the 7’4″ phenom.
Wembanyama couldn’t do much damage to the Mavericks from close to the hoop; this might be the next stage of his game that he has to develop if he were to become the league’s most prominent star. He had to settle for a ton of jumpshots on the night, and the results weren’t pretty. He finished the night with just five made field goals out of 18 attempts, with only one of his three-point shots going in out of eight tries.
There simply has to be a better way for the Spurs to get Wembanyama easier baskets. But there shouldn’t be any concern moving forward for Wembanyama; after all, even the best have their fair share of off nights.
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