1) The Spurs are building an incredible team infrastructure around Wembanyama
No matter how great you are individually, you need excellent roster construction around your superstar to complement his strengths. Jordan couldn’t win until Scottie Pippen came into his own. Shaq needed Kobe and Dwyane Wade to win his titles, and LeBron needed Wade to show him how to win before becoming his own. It’s no different for Wembanyama.
As great as Wembanyama is, he’ll only go as far as good as the pieces around him are. The Spurs have done a solid job so far with young players such as Devin Vassell and drafting rookie Stephon Castle, who looks to be a future premier defender. Even Julian Champagnie from the G League, who’s been very impactful for the Spurs this season, who sit over .500 currently.
It also helps that they added veterans who’ve played in big games, such as NBA legend Chris Paul and grizzled veteran Harrison Barnes, who won a title with the Warriors in 2015. Having those guys in the locker room to show the young players how to prepare and be professional expedites their maturity and conduct themselves on and off the court.
The Spurs still have a long way to go before constructing a title contender around Wemby. Trading for a star lead guard in their prime (a la De'Aaron Fox) could be worth looking into, as he fits their timeline and complements Wemby nicely. There's still work to do, but they're on the right track.
Wembanyama loves being coached hard and loves the game.
Behind every great player in any sport is a tireless work ethic to improve and a willingness to be coached. Wembanyama has that. In a post-game press conference earlier in the season, his teammate Chris Paul commented on how impressed he was by the young phenom’s work habits.
"You know how talented he is, but his will to want to get better, his will to want to work on things [stands out]. The more games we play, I think we all get more and more familiar with each other."
Having that drive to push your limits and hone your craft is something you’ve seen all the legends do from Jordan, Kobe, LeBron, and so on, and why they’re immortalized forever. Add in his willingness to be coached hard to get the best out of him; it's something you love to see from your franchise cornerstone. It's what separates the good from the immortals.
“I like to be coached,” Wembanyama said, per the San Antonio Express-News. “I like to be threatened to be sent to the G League if I don’t play the right way. I like when there are consequences to my mistakes.”
With his relentless work ethic, coachability, attention to detail, and extraterrestrial abilities on both ends of the court, I believe (health permitting) Victor Wembanyama can become the greatest player basketball has ever seen.