Victor Wembanyama overshadowed Chet Holmgren's impressive summer, but that may be good for him and OKC
CBSN
The spectacle of Wembanyama distracted us from a player with similar size and skill
The indoor temperature at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas reached uncomfortable temperatures as fans, scouts, coaches and fellow players compromised customary personal space to get a glimpse of Victor Wembanyama's Summer League debut. They flocked, in part, because Wembanyama is something we've never seen before -- a 7-foot-4 athletic marvel, capable of putting on a dribbling exhibition, swishing one-legged 3-pointers and swatting shots into the third row of the stands. "He's an elite defender. His 7-foot-6 wingspan helps him affect and block shots routinely. Even when he's not necessarily in perfect defensive position, he can recover with sheer length. Victor Wembanyama 7-4 210 2023 0Chet Holmgren 7-1 195 2022 0Aleksej Pokusevski 7-0 210 2020 140 John Butler Jr. 7-0 190 2022 19 Zhou Qi 7-1 210 2016 19 Boniface Ndong 7-0 205 2005 23
Worth the hype? Absolutely. Something we've never seen before? Well, we may have to rethink that one. On offense he's an additive force as well, ranking last season in the 99th percentile around the rim and finishing just about every shot attempt within arm's reach of the bucket. As nearly a 40% 3-point shooter, he can space the floor as a true deep threat and also has some true guard skills as a handler. There's not much he can't do as a prospect, and with his sky-high ceiling being among the highest in the draft, he has a legitimate case to be considered as this year's top prospect."
To borrow from a prospect scouting report by our very own draft analyst Kyle Boone:
