Wemby out of this world

Fans call Victor Wembanyama an alien because he plays out of this world. If he’s an extraterrestrial being, the NBA planet isn’t safe with Wemby crushing every human in sight. Giannis Antetokounmpo once said, “As long as Victor stays healthy, the league is his.”

Wemby, 22, is on his third NBA season and has led the San Antonio Spurs to a remarkable jump from 22 wins as a rookie to 34 and 62. Of course, the 7-4 phenom isn’t the only reason why the Spurs are back in the NBA Finals since 2014. Coach Mitch Johnson, who took over from the legendary Gregg Popovich five games into the previous campaign, has done a remarkable job surrounding Wemby with a bunch of overachievers who don’t back down from pressure or tough odds.

The Spurs survived three challenging series to get to the Last Dance while the other finalist New York is coming off an 11-game win streak highlighted by 4-0 sweeps of Philadelphia and Cleveland. Resilience has to be San Antonio’s trademark. The Spurs lost a home game to Portland then recovered to win three in a row. They lost the series opener to Minnesota at home and bounced back to oust the Timberwolves in six, the clincher coming on the road. Against the defending champion Oklahoma City, San Antonio was in a twice-to-win disadvantage entering Game 6 and took the last two outings, with the closer on the road, to advance to the Finals.

Game 7 in OKC was Wemby’s stage to announce his emergence as an alien invader. He finished with 22 points, punctuated by three-of-five triples, and seven rebounds as the Spurs dethroned the Thunder, 111-103. OKC’s twin towers Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein combined for 11 points as they appeared in awe of Wemby’s cosmic presence.

What makes Wemby extra special is his attitude. Spurs general manager Brian Wright was quoted by Jeff McDonald of Athlon Sports as saying, “the level of maturity, the level of focus, the level of drive is even beyond what somebody can tell you…the humility, being a good teammate, how much winning matters to him.” Wemby said, “every day, I try to push harder and to do more – more achievements, more records, more wins but the next day, I always tell myself that I didn’t do enough and to push me even more.”

David Robinson and Tim Duncan were the Spurs’ No. 1 picks in the past and now, Wemby has joined them in the elite circle of San Antonio heroes and he’s just getting started. In case you’re wondering how Wemby got to be so tall, his father Felix, born in Belgium of Congolese descent, is 6-6 and his mother Elodie de Fautereau, a former French basketball player, is 6-3. He was 5-11 before turning 11. As a boy, Wemby was a soccer goalkeeper and did judo before turning to hoops at seven. In the NBA Finals starting Thursday morning (Manila time), he’ll be tested by grizzled 7-foot veteran Karl Anthony Towns, who’s physical and gifted with an outside touch. It’ll be a matchup to watch.