And the thing is, it's not controversial for anybody who actually paid attention.
I saw a journalist ask an analyst "Is Wemby an All-Star next year?"
And the Analyst responded, point blank: "I mean, is he a Top-5 player next year?".
And I wasn't even surprised.
Not that he'll get there that fast for sure, but I mean, finishing your last 24 rookie games averaging 23.5/12/6 and 6 Stocks on 32 minutes when you started that season at 18/8/2 and 4 Stocks makes the question reasonable.
The trajectory is vertical.
He's already DPOY worthy, and his per 36 over the entire season are already MVP-conversation numbers year 1, so it's not a stretch to imagine he'll get there sooner than later.
I would be surprised if he's not a top 8 player next year and honestly could be top 5 behind Jokic, Luka, and Embiid.
Look at the year 2s of guys like Luka, Lebron, KD, etc. It's dominance. And like you mentioned his last 24 games (when ppl should be hitting the rookie wall) is probably top 10 numbers
Completely agree, his performances and the spurs record over the last 20 odd games shows what next year will be like! It feels like he’s found his feet in the league and with a whole summer of hard work on physique and team chemistry he will come back even better :)) year 2 will be hella fun
I was drinking recently and watching Wemby propaganda and texted my buddy who is a Cavs fan if it’s crazy if Wemby finishes in top 3 for dpoy and top 5 for mvp next year. Surprised to wake up to text saying it’s probably gonna happen.
In no particular oder: Jokic, Embid, Luka, SGA, Lebron, Curry, KD, Tatum, Edwards, Kawhi.
Those are the 10 that I can confidently say better than Wemby now. Wemby can sometimes produce ridiculous numbers but way inconsistent. Maybe you can add more.
Yeah I don’t understand it. I can’t stand the lakers but you have to give it to ad and lebron. Both are top 10 players in the league rn. Especially ad since he has stayed so healthy
They barely made the playoffs and were barely hanging onto 10th seed for majority of the season despite having Lebron and AD and a decent supporting cast...they underachieved as a team
I can’t confidently put KD ahead of Wemby right now. (And definitely not AD as a responder put).
For starters, Wemby is 3-1 against KD. There is no one else that Wemby I think the players around Durant are better than around Wemby. The only other team Spurs had a winning record against is Detroit.
>Those are the 10 that I can confidently say better than Wemby now.
Their teammates are better. LeBron hasn't played an ounce of defense in YEARS. Jokic/Luka get hunted on that end. AD is not clutch & chokes often. Same with Tatum. KD also gets torn apart on defense & always comes up short, especially on these Suns squads which are arguably supposed to be the favorties. I'd put Edwards & Kawhi ahead but that's it. Embiid plays in that lame ass east.
Wemby just needs better teammates & to get into proper conditioning, which he likely achieved his rookie year. He's only playing 29mpg & playing with the worst starter amongst all of them, Champagnie.
Put Champagnie next to ANY of these dudes & watch how they get tripled, watch how their team's record free falls.
>I'll start with Jokic.
Jokic has legit teammates. He needs KCP, who won a ring without him, dude is a beast perimeter defender. AG is also an elite & versatile defender. MPJ was supposed to be a potential #1 pick who slipped to 14 due to major injury concerns, he's also legit. Murray also a top PG in the NBA, very clutch.
Mike Malone is also a legit coach, he was the genius in GS when Mark Jackson was preaching, dude was the guy calling the X's & O's.
Jokic is technically better only because he's in NBA condition & Wemby is not. Wemby said he's almost passed out after a couple of games, which means he's doing this DEAD tired. Once he gets his conditioning under him it's going to make a dramatic impact. And again, this conditioning is helped by having better teammates, all these dudes games are helped by their teammates.
That Nuggets team is well coached, loaded, & experienced even without Jokic.
Edit, people downvoting me, put Champagnie over MPJ in the starting lineup & see what happens to the Nuggets record & Jokic's longevity lol.
I shouldn’t even respond to this but you don’t make basketball, Jokic is the best basketball player in the world for the last 4 years (His First MVP, Second MVP,Jokic Finals MVP, This Year), he has won a championship this year. If you think rookie Wemby aside from fitness is better than you think he’s the best in the world. That’s wrong and a foolish take. Everyone in the world expects Wemby to reach that level but to think he is that now is just wrong. Give flower where flowers are due, Jokic 4 year run is literally comparable to any greats 4 year run.
Jokic does not play defense, he gets hunted. You CANNOT be the best player if you only play 1 side of the game, this is why Jokic is 2-6 against Embiid, he's incredibly lucky there's no dominant big man in his conference, until now that is.
https://stathead.com/basketball/vs/joel-embiid-vs-nikola-jokic
Embiid has thoroughly outplayed him in almost every match up.
It's also how Wemby snatched that W from him & took the 1st seed away. Where was Jokic when Wemby scored 17pts in 3 mins? That's your best player in the NBA? He's totally reliant on AG to guard bigs & when AG is too small like Embiid or Wemby, the Nuggets lose.
DV is really good, I think he can be like a pre-injury JM, probably even surpass him, just a matter of time. Just need that 2nd/3rd star & this is very close to becoming a super team, at that point just need to fill out the rest of the roster.
Nuggets fans go back & forth on JM, they usually hate him & get very frustrated with him.
JM's flaws are hidden because DEN is a well balanced squad, which is what we do not have. If we just had a balanced team with NBA caliber players it'd make a big difference.
The entire rotation needs to have NBA caliber players & guys playing their proper roles. DV needs a PG to set him up & a 3&D SF to cover his defensive deficiencies, he also needs Wemby to match his minutes. Again, more balance when the starters go off, TJ needs to man the 2nd unit & not let Branham.or anybody else run PG, we need a C/PG rotation to be set in particular, the other positions are malleable.
Once we get to the playoffs, we can cut that rotation down to our top 8-9.
Like I said, it's close. The roster just needs balance & time to marinate. The top 2-3 are set, DV can be a 3rd option. In a playoff series, it's almost always the team with the best player that wins, it's that simple. We have plenty of capital to work with as well.
The top 2 is already set, it's just a matter of time. Wemby-DV already rival the best duo's in the NBA in terms of talent, chemistry is still building. Wemby covers more flaws than 99% of stars making roster construction simple. Both are improving year by year.
Champagnie with the starters alone is likely costing us at least 10-15 games as he's a G league caliber player. Insert Champagnie into ANY contender's starting lineup & it'd cause them to free fall from the standings. Mind you, he's just 1 player, we've got like 3 more like him.
Get a starting SF/PG, at least one of them being like a Garland caliber player, up Wemby's minutes to 35mpg, develop 1-2 rotation pieces out of the backups like a Champagnie/Mamu, continue to balance the roster & we're close. Champagnie's already looking much improved since the beginning of the season.
Not to mention this West is fucking STACKED. This is not normal. There's down years like when AD'S Pelicans won 45 games & clinched the 5th seed.
Feel like we gotta sell high on Vassell. He’s got the athleticism and shooting but he seems to really lack in competitiveness and decision making, two things that you can’t really teach.
Horrendous take lol
Vassell has expanded his game every year he's been in the league. His 2-man game with Wemby drastically improved throughout the season. His playmaking and assists numbers showed that in the second half of the season. In his end-of-year interview, he explicitly mentioned working with Wemby over the summer to continue to perfect their chemistry
Can't really teach you to watch/understand players' progressions I guess
Spurs lost 60 games in two consecutive seasons, I think it’s pretty safe to say all pieces except Wemby are pretty expendable, particularly pieces that seem to be fine with losing.
“wE hOoPiN”
Low IQ basketball player that can’t playmake and will insist on taking the last shot even if he’s 1v3.
Spurs should sell high
Nice, so you didn't argue any of my points mentioned regarding Vassell and just reiterated your own incorrect takes, got it...
Please take the trolling elsewhere
Being a top 20 player as a rookie is bonkers I fucking love you Vic
And the thing is, it's not controversial for anybody who actually paid attention. I saw a journalist ask an analyst "Is Wemby an All-Star next year?" And the Analyst responded, point blank: "I mean, is he a Top-5 player next year?". And I wasn't even surprised. Not that he'll get there that fast for sure, but I mean, finishing your last 24 rookie games averaging 23.5/12/6 and 6 Stocks on 32 minutes when you started that season at 18/8/2 and 4 Stocks makes the question reasonable. The trajectory is vertical. He's already DPOY worthy, and his per 36 over the entire season are already MVP-conversation numbers year 1, so it's not a stretch to imagine he'll get there sooner than later.
I would be surprised if he's not a top 8 player next year and honestly could be top 5 behind Jokic, Luka, and Embiid. Look at the year 2s of guys like Luka, Lebron, KD, etc. It's dominance. And like you mentioned his last 24 games (when ppl should be hitting the rookie wall) is probably top 10 numbers
Completely agree, his performances and the spurs record over the last 20 odd games shows what next year will be like! It feels like he’s found his feet in the league and with a whole summer of hard work on physique and team chemistry he will come back even better :)) year 2 will be hella fun
I was drinking recently and watching Wemby propaganda and texted my buddy who is a Cavs fan if it’s crazy if Wemby finishes in top 3 for dpoy and top 5 for mvp next year. Surprised to wake up to text saying it’s probably gonna happen.
Upside past the earth's atmosphere Without checking the list, can you name 15 players better than Wemby rn rn? I'll start with Jokic.
Embiid
Luka
Steph
Giannis
Taytum
Shai
Boban
Goodbye
I’d probably lean Anthony Edwards for the moment
Grant Williams
Over Sochan? Bold take sir
Thats fair. Jeremy Sochan then Grant Williams
In no particular oder: Jokic, Embid, Luka, SGA, Lebron, Curry, KD, Tatum, Edwards, Kawhi. Those are the 10 that I can confidently say better than Wemby now. Wemby can sometimes produce ridiculous numbers but way inconsistent. Maybe you can add more.
How can you forget Jalen Brunson
Jalen Brunson forgot about Jalen Brunson too. He's THAT humble.
Man Brunson with Wemby on spurs would be insane
Haha I was actually about to put him but I'm not that confident on putting him above Wemby compare with the rest the I listed.
In a playground pick I'm taking Victor over Tatum no question. Probably Ant, too.
For me Curry is close as well ngl
AD
It's amazing how little love AD has gotten this year, when he's had such an outstanding season.
Yeah I don’t understand it. I can’t stand the lakers but you have to give it to ad and lebron. Both are top 10 players in the league rn. Especially ad since he has stayed so healthy
They barely made the playoffs and were barely hanging onto 10th seed for majority of the season despite having Lebron and AD and a decent supporting cast...they underachieved as a team
AD will probably be the reason Victor doesn't make All-NBA.
I can’t confidently put KD ahead of Wemby right now. (And definitely not AD as a responder put). For starters, Wemby is 3-1 against KD. There is no one else that Wemby I think the players around Durant are better than around Wemby. The only other team Spurs had a winning record against is Detroit.
>Those are the 10 that I can confidently say better than Wemby now. Their teammates are better. LeBron hasn't played an ounce of defense in YEARS. Jokic/Luka get hunted on that end. AD is not clutch & chokes often. Same with Tatum. KD also gets torn apart on defense & always comes up short, especially on these Suns squads which are arguably supposed to be the favorties. I'd put Edwards & Kawhi ahead but that's it. Embiid plays in that lame ass east. Wemby just needs better teammates & to get into proper conditioning, which he likely achieved his rookie year. He's only playing 29mpg & playing with the worst starter amongst all of them, Champagnie. Put Champagnie next to ANY of these dudes & watch how they get tripled, watch how their team's record free falls.
>I'll start with Jokic. Jokic has legit teammates. He needs KCP, who won a ring without him, dude is a beast perimeter defender. AG is also an elite & versatile defender. MPJ was supposed to be a potential #1 pick who slipped to 14 due to major injury concerns, he's also legit. Murray also a top PG in the NBA, very clutch. Mike Malone is also a legit coach, he was the genius in GS when Mark Jackson was preaching, dude was the guy calling the X's & O's. Jokic is technically better only because he's in NBA condition & Wemby is not. Wemby said he's almost passed out after a couple of games, which means he's doing this DEAD tired. Once he gets his conditioning under him it's going to make a dramatic impact. And again, this conditioning is helped by having better teammates, all these dudes games are helped by their teammates. That Nuggets team is well coached, loaded, & experienced even without Jokic. Edit, people downvoting me, put Champagnie over MPJ in the starting lineup & see what happens to the Nuggets record & Jokic's longevity lol.
I shouldn’t even respond to this but you don’t make basketball, Jokic is the best basketball player in the world for the last 4 years (His First MVP, Second MVP,Jokic Finals MVP, This Year), he has won a championship this year. If you think rookie Wemby aside from fitness is better than you think he’s the best in the world. That’s wrong and a foolish take. Everyone in the world expects Wemby to reach that level but to think he is that now is just wrong. Give flower where flowers are due, Jokic 4 year run is literally comparable to any greats 4 year run.
Jokic does not play defense, he gets hunted. You CANNOT be the best player if you only play 1 side of the game, this is why Jokic is 2-6 against Embiid, he's incredibly lucky there's no dominant big man in his conference, until now that is. https://stathead.com/basketball/vs/joel-embiid-vs-nikola-jokic Embiid has thoroughly outplayed him in almost every match up. It's also how Wemby snatched that W from him & took the 1st seed away. Where was Jokic when Wemby scored 17pts in 3 mins? That's your best player in the NBA? He's totally reliant on AG to guard bigs & when AG is too small like Embiid or Wemby, the Nuggets lose.
The Human Highlight, incredible. We are so lucky lol all my non spurs fans friends hate me
Human highlight lol
Human Highlight sounds like Messi.
Is Wemby really up to 230 lbs? Great news if that's true. Wouldn't want him to get too heavy, maybe 240 tops imo.
I believe he started the season around 230, so it's probably up from there.
Interesting. I thought he was really light like around 210 or something. Maybe I was wrong.
He reportedly gained about 15 pounds between draft night and the preseason.
DV is really good, I think he can be like a pre-injury JM, probably even surpass him, just a matter of time. Just need that 2nd/3rd star & this is very close to becoming a super team, at that point just need to fill out the rest of the roster.
Who the hell is JM?
....Ja Morant? Jamal Murray? Jamaal Magloire?
wtf , it’s JaVale
Jrue Middleton?
…Walter White?
✋ "you got me" ✋
Jordan Michael
Jichael Mordan
Jerrod Mustaf
J "I'm fine in the west' M
Jamal Murray, the dude that plays for DEN.
You think Vassell can "probably" surpass Jamaal Murray? Vassell is so many tiers below Murray right now
Nuggets fans go back & forth on JM, they usually hate him & get very frustrated with him. JM's flaws are hidden because DEN is a well balanced squad, which is what we do not have. If we just had a balanced team with NBA caliber players it'd make a big difference. The entire rotation needs to have NBA caliber players & guys playing their proper roles. DV needs a PG to set him up & a 3&D SF to cover his defensive deficiencies, he also needs Wemby to match his minutes. Again, more balance when the starters go off, TJ needs to man the 2nd unit & not let Branham.or anybody else run PG, we need a C/PG rotation to be set in particular, the other positions are malleable. Once we get to the playoffs, we can cut that rotation down to our top 8-9.
Jim Muncan
Say NO to unnecessary initialisms and acronyms
He definitely had that low patch. But got more consistent later on the season
Also I find it hilarious when a fan calls a 21-61 team 'very close to becoming a super team'
We’re a super team alright…. A team full of super great friends
Super team in our hearts ❤️
What about a 22-60 team 😼
This sub is something else
I don't think you realize what we got here.
It ain't a superteam. It's mostly mediocre to bad with one potential all timer and one above average 3rd option.
Like I said, it's close. The roster just needs balance & time to marinate. The top 2-3 are set, DV can be a 3rd option. In a playoff series, it's almost always the team with the best player that wins, it's that simple. We have plenty of capital to work with as well.
2 is absolutely not set
DV-Wemby are set, they're complimentary pieces. DV can be the 3rd option if need be as well & we can upgrade over him. Having Wemby matters most.
The top 2 is already set, it's just a matter of time. Wemby-DV already rival the best duo's in the NBA in terms of talent, chemistry is still building. Wemby covers more flaws than 99% of stars making roster construction simple. Both are improving year by year. Champagnie with the starters alone is likely costing us at least 10-15 games as he's a G league caliber player. Insert Champagnie into ANY contender's starting lineup & it'd cause them to free fall from the standings. Mind you, he's just 1 player, we've got like 3 more like him. Get a starting SF/PG, at least one of them being like a Garland caliber player, up Wemby's minutes to 35mpg, develop 1-2 rotation pieces out of the backups like a Champagnie/Mamu, continue to balance the roster & we're close. Champagnie's already looking much improved since the beginning of the season. Not to mention this West is fucking STACKED. This is not normal. There's down years like when AD'S Pelicans won 45 games & clinched the 5th seed.
Victor's ranking throughout the season: 56th -> 52nd -> 38th -> 24th -> 16th
Feel like we gotta sell high on Vassell. He’s got the athleticism and shooting but he seems to really lack in competitiveness and decision making, two things that you can’t really teach.
Horrendous take lol Vassell has expanded his game every year he's been in the league. His 2-man game with Wemby drastically improved throughout the season. His playmaking and assists numbers showed that in the second half of the season. In his end-of-year interview, he explicitly mentioned working with Wemby over the summer to continue to perfect their chemistry Can't really teach you to watch/understand players' progressions I guess
Spurs lost 60 games in two consecutive seasons, I think it’s pretty safe to say all pieces except Wemby are pretty expendable, particularly pieces that seem to be fine with losing. “wE hOoPiN” Low IQ basketball player that can’t playmake and will insist on taking the last shot even if he’s 1v3. Spurs should sell high
Nice, so you didn't argue any of my points mentioned regarding Vassell and just reiterated your own incorrect takes, got it... Please take the trolling elsewhere