Welcome to Layup Lines, For the Win’s basketball newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Have feedback for the Layup Lines Crew? Leave your concerns, remarks, and issues in this quick reader study. Now, here’s Mike Sykes
Happy Friday, folks! Welcome back to Layup Lines. Thanks so much for signingupwith me today. I hope you’ve had a wonderful week.
Let’s talk about Victor Wembanyama today duetothefactthat we wear’t talk about Victor Wembanyama enough.
With the NBA’s pillars in LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant coming to the end of their professions quickly, the entire “face of the league” thing hasactually endedupbeing one of the most popular topics folks like to talkabout.
Everyone desires to understand who the next torch bearer for the NBA is going to be? Giannis Antetokounmpo believes it may be numerous gamers. Others think a charming gamer like Anthony Edwards can do it. There are definitely plenty of great responses out there.
But for me? It’s Big Vic, male. This man simply has the juice.
Part of being the face of the NBA is not simply having a terrific videogame — plenty of gamers have that. The other part of it is simply being a fantastic quote. You’ve got to want that spotlight. You have to understand the right things to state when. And the things you state have to be intriguing.
We understand Wemby has the videogame to do it — he’s not even balancing 30 minutes a night and is putting up remarkable numbers. But that’s not what lets me understand that he’s allset to be the guy in the NBA.
It’s the minutes like this that get me.
🎙️Victor Wembanyama sur le titre du défenseur de l’année : « C’est sûr que ça m’intéresse, c’est une récompense que je veux gagner dans le futur ».
« Rudy (Gobert) a de très grosses possibilities de le gagner cette année. Ce serait mérité mais qu’il le gagne maintenant automobile après ce ne… pic.twitter.com/TdB99oPEf9
— Théo Quintard (@TheoQuintard) March 14, 2024
What you’re hearing in that video is Vic reacting in French to a concern about completing with Rudy Gobert for Defensive Player of the Year this year.
Here’s a translation for you: “I understand that Rudy [Gobert] has a really great opportunity of winning it this year and it would be wasworthyof. But let him win it now, since later it’s no longer his turn.”
That’s some unbelievable self-confidence from this kid. He’s talking about a three-time (likely quickly to be 4) Defensive Player of the Year like this, who is likewise one of his NBA coaches, by the method.
Wembanyama doesn’t care. If you’re not with him, you’re versus him. And he’s coming for you.
This is the sort of self-confidence individuals love. It’s what makes individuals root for you. The Spurs just have 14 wins, however you wouldn’t understand it from the method Wembanyama talks about himself and his group. With that quote, he’s actually selling you, me, and everybody else on his future as one of the finest protective gamers this league has ever seen.
Might that come back to bite him? Sure. It’s possible. But Wembanyama not being scared of that spotlight — not being scared of failure — is precisely why Wemby will be the gamer we’re all glued to moving forward.
Well, that and his capability to make grown males appearance like 5-year-