That is technically the primary, however spiritually the second, in an ongoing collection as we try to make sense of Victor Wembanyama’s growth and early utilization. A few of it might stick, a few of it received’t, nevertheless it ought to all present a snapshot of the Spurs’ course of and Wembanyama’s myriad strengths.
Cherrypicking in French is cueillete des cerises, which doesn’t sound fairly as pejorative as when enjoying pickup ball and somebody sells out for a simple basket. For Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs, the idea additionally appears agreeable, at the least in these early days of Pop and Co. kicking the tires on every little thing their multifaceted rookie can do on the ground.
Of their preseason opener towards Oklahoma Metropolis, the staff continued a pattern they explored within the Silver and Black Scrimmage through which Wembanyama leaks out early to ascertain place and/or get behind an unset protection for a bonus or fast bucket. This isn’t revolutionary stuff, and it clearly didn’t occur on each possession, nevertheless it’s one other pinhole into how the Spurs select to leverage Wembanyama’s abilities.
As of their open scrimmage, the outcomes of Wembanyama trying to get behind the protection had been blended, however nonetheless enjoyable to look at and try to unpack. Whereas the principle situation within the scrimmage was the accuracy on the hit-ahead passes, the loss towards the Thunder confirmed different trade-offs on the defensive aspect.
Beneath, Wembanyama seems to time a splash off a Thunder miss, disappearing off-frame. Whereas Chet Holmgren tries to stay with him, the OKC huge is healthier positioned to return to the play and end off a reduce to the rim, Wembanyama nonetheless trailing behind him.
Minutes later, an analogous possession however a special outcome: the Spurs hand over a number of seems on the basket with Wembanyama already 20-plus ft away from the play. This time Tre Jones comes away with the ball and is ready to dime Wembanyama up for a high-percentage look.
The Spurs will know the price of pulling a 7-3 participant with an 8-foot wingspan away from the defensive glass, however Wemby shouldn’t be your typical huge. He spent a lot of his preseason debut guarding 6-5 Jalen Williams on the perimeter, the kind of task that doubtless affords benefits each tactical and associated to lowering the wear and tear on his physique. If the Spurs weren’t fascinated with matching him towards the 195-pound Chet Holmgren, it’s secure to imagine they’ll be equally averse with bulkier, extra conventional 5s. (The Thunder going small additionally issues right here. Matchups towards two-big lineups might alter how liberal the Spurs are with Wemby Leaks.)
With Wembanyama away from the paint, he ought to have extra bandwidth to make use of his size to freelance, whether or not it’s bringing assist across the basket, beating opponents down the ground, or within the case of the spotlight beneath, bending area and time to create a turnover earlier than beating his opponent down the ground.
Think about an invisible dial subsequent to every wrinkle within the Spurs’ Wembanyama experiment. Additionally think about a sh*t ton of dials. What feels deliberate, even pressured in these early days, will doubtless file right into a deep bag of nuances that the Spurs or Wemby will audible to as time goes on. With Wemby Leaks, as with each different play that catches the attention this season, Pop and his employees will proceed to tinker, consider and see what works and what frequency for such a novel prospect. We get to take a seat again and watch.
