During an interview with NBA reporter David Aldridge of The Athletic, Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid was asked what advice he would give to San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama.
Embiid, one of the best players in the NBA, didn’t hold anything back while talking about Wembanyama.
“Not trying to be too critical,” Embiid said. “Obviously, extremely talented. Right now, there’s so much hype around him, I think he’s trying to live up to the hype. That’s what I see. And I watch a lot of (NBA) games. I think, first of all, he has to figure out where he wants to play, whether he wants to be a guard or a big or whatever. It’s not necessarily whether he wants to be a guard or a big; it’s what he wants to become. Do you want to become KD, or do you want to become me?”
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers, Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs Updates
Wembanyama is averaging 18.3 points, 10.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.3 steals and 3.0 blocks this season while shooting 43.3% from the field, 27.8% from beyond the arc and 77.1% from the free-throw line. The 19-year-old leads the NBA in blocks per game.
“The one thing that I’m happy about is they’re allowing him to make those mistakes, and learn from it,” Embiid said. “But I just think there’s a good and bad in that. The good of it is you learn through your mistakes. But then again, the bad of it is, you know, it just feels a little forced. Like, some of the shots. He can make it easy on himself. He can make it easy for himself. Like, he’s 7-5, 7-6.”
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers, Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs Updates
The Spurs are only 4-25 on the season. They have the second-worst record in the NBA. Wembanyama’s best game of the season came on November 2 against the Phoenix Suns. He finished with 38 points and 10 rebounds and led the Spurs to a 132-121 win over Kevin Durant and the Suns.
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