San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama had another outstanding performance, making his mark in the record books alongside some legendary players. In a game against the Sacramento Kings on Monday night, Wembanyama scored 34 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, provided six assists, and blocked three shots, leading the Spurs to a 116-96 victory. This game marked Wembanyama’s 82nd career game, effectively completing his first full season in the NBA.
With this remarkable outing, he joined the ranks of Oscar Robertson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Blake Griffin, and Sidney Wicks as the only players in league history to achieve 1,700 points, 800 rebounds, and 300 assists in their first 82 games. Veteran point guard Chris Paul believes the league has yet to see Wembanyama’s full potential. “I wish you guys could see the work that goes in day in and day out,” Paul said.
“You know how talented he is, but his desire to improve and his commitment to working on his game are impressive. As we continue to play more games, I believe we will all become more familiar with each other.” Wembanyama was named Rookie of the Year and was a runner-up to fellow Frenchman Rudy Gobert for the Defensive Player of the Year award last season. He averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and led the league with 3.6 blocks over 71 games.
Although his statistics have dipped slightly this season—he’s averaging 4.0 blocks—he reports feeling better after spending a long summer helping France win a silver medal at the Paris Olympics. In a recent game against the Utah Jazz, Wembanyama scored 24 points, collected 16 rebounds, and blocked seven shots, despite the Spurs losing 111-110. He also reached a career high by making six 3-pointers out of nine attempts against the Jazz.
This marked Wembanyama’s third career game with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, five blocks, and five 3-pointers, the most of any player in league history. He matched his career high by shooting 6 for 12 on 3-pointers against the Kings. After a slow start that saw his 3-point shooting percentage fall to 25%, Wembanyama has improved significantly, going 14 for 27 from beyond the arc in his last three games.
“I’m just taking better 3s,” Wembanyama said. “Yeah, of course, it’s feeling better. I’m 20, and I hope that as the years go by, my shooting will keep getting better. There’s no reason for it to feel worse.”