Drafted by the San Antonio Spurs, Victor Wembanyama becomes the first Frenchman number 1 in the NBA draft

It was an open secret. And he was quickly up that night. Victor Wembanyama had the rare privilege of having his name announced first by NBA commissioner Adam Silver during the ceremony at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. A little after 8:00 p.m. in New York and in front of the cameras of the national ABC channel and the ESPN network in the United States, the 2.21m giant screwed his cap on his head with the silver spur of the San Antonio Spurs, after having was selected by the Texas franchise. He becomes the first Frenchman in history to be number 1 in an NBA draft. And the second European, after Andrea Bargnani (Toronto Raptors) in 2006.

Since May 16 and the lottery, it was obvious to all specialized observers that the Spurs were not going to miss this opportunity to select Victor Wembanyama. Because the 19-year-old phenomenon is considered the greatest hope that we have seen emerge since LeBron James, twenty years ago. Just that.

At Spurs, like Tony Parker

It must be said that the native of Chesnay in Yvelines, finalist in the French championship with Boulogne-Levallois this year, has unique skills for a boy with such extraordinary dimensions (2.21 m, 243 cm wingspan) between his dexterity and touch. And since it also presents a real vision of the game and a reliable shoot, it generates a “hype” rarely seen. For many, “Wemby”, who ended up seducing America during two exhibition matches at the start of the season on US soil, can simply open a new era in the NBA.

With San Antonio, the former protégé of Vincent Collet will discover a franchise well known to the French public. 22 years ago, Tony Parker had also been retained by the Spurs during the 2001 draft (28th position) before leaving an indelible mark there with four rings of champions at the key (2003, 2005, 2007, 2014) . His number 9 jersey has even been removed since by the Texan team, which has also seen Boris Diaw shine in his colors with a title in 2014. We wish Victor Wembanyama such a brilliant career.

Never a Frenchman had been selected before the 7th choice

The one that LeBron James himself has compared to a “UFO” will however have his work cut out for him, the Spurs team starting from quite a distance. But if he finds himself in a training that ended with the second worst record of the 2022-2023 season (22 wins, 60 losses), he will have the chance to work under the orders of the former mentor of TP, the already legendary Gregg Popovich who re-signed for three years.

First French basketball player chosen so high (note: so far, Killian Hayes, 7th in 2020, held the record), Victor Wembanyama will now have to assume this status. And if he showed this year with the Mets or the Blues that he seems to manage all this madness on his person calmly, it is not the same thing to be the number 1 of a draft in the best league in the world. world. He has been able to measure in recent days what this can represent with a whirlwind of requests since his arrival on American soil. It is up to him to continue to assume in order to write his destiny. And if he will test himself in the Summer League at the beginning of July, everyone is now looking forward to his first steps in the biggest League in the world next October. His new life has just begun.