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San Antonio Spurs rookie phenom Victor Wembanyama shared the court with three of his idols—All-Stars Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Russell Westbrook—during Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers.
But that was about the only highlight of the night for Wembanyama.
The top overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft was held to 11 points (4-of-10 shooting) and five rebounds while the Spurs committed a season-worst 25 turnovers in the 123-83 loss. When San Antonio returns to the court Tuesday night against the Phoenix Suns, Wembanyama will once again face off with a player he looked up to even before arriving in the NBA—Kevin Durant.
"I like the fact that for years and years, nobody found a way to guard him, really, consistently," Wembanyama told reporters this week about facing Durant. "This is probably the reason why he was one of my top favorite players ever. It is going to be special, of course, but every night it's going to be special in the NBA."
Wembanyama may have grown up watching Durant, but now the 19-year-old is constantly drawing comparisons to the 13-time All-Star.
Durant is known for his versatile ball-handling and sharpshooting scoring abilities while also being just about 7 feet tall. The same attributes contributed to the 7-foot-4 rookie point-forward being so highly sought ahead of the NBA Draft lottery.
Wembanyama entered the 2023-24 season as the first odds-on favorite to win Rookie of the Year since Durant in 2007-08. Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce recently said on the Ticket and The Truth podcast that Wembanaya is "looking like a cross between Giannis [Antetokounmpo] and KD [Durant]."
But the rookie should be used to that sort of praise by now.
Hall of Famer Jerry West said Wembanyama is going to be an iconic player. LeBron James described the French phenom as an alien, while Stephen Curry called him a 2K create-a-player in a reference to the popular video game.
Durant was the latest to throw some praise at the rookie ahead of their first matchup.
"He's a talented, gifted individual who is only going to get better and be more comfortable as an NBA player as each game goes past," Durant said, via the Arizona Republic. "I just see his enthusiasm just through the TV. Sprinting up and down the court, trying to block every shot. Just being aggressive, excited for his teammates."
The rookie is averaging 15.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks across his first three games for the Spurs (1-2). His best game so far came in a win over the Houston Rockets, when he scored 21 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and filled out the stat sheet with three steals and three blocked shots.
Wembanyama told French outlets last year that he's trying to make his own name for himself in basketball rather than being compared to other greats. But that doesn't mean he doesn't borrow attributes from players like Durant or Antetokounmpo to add to his own game.
"What he studies with Durant is how he gets his feet underneath him, how his footwork is to launch shots," ESPN's Brian Windhorst said on his podcast earlier this year. "He sees himself trying to play the game more like Kevin Durant."
The Spurs and Suns play twice over the next three nights. The first is scheduled to tip off at 10 p.m. ET in Phoenix on Tuesday, with the game airing on TNT. After a night off, the squads will return to the court on Thursday at 10 p.m. ET for a matchup on NBA TV.
About the writer
Robert Read is a Life & Trends Reporter at Newsweek based in Florida. His background is primarily in sports journalism ... Read more