Stephen Curry believes Victor Wembanyama is revolutionising basketball. Curry sees parallels between Wembanyama’s impact and his own transformative effect on the game. Curry feels that Wembanyama shrinks the court in ways the NBA is still trying to understand.
Spurs Tasked With Understanding Wembanyama
The San Antonio Spurs are not just trying to play well with Wembanyama. Their task involves helping him understand himself. Curry understands this journey. He told The Athletic that talent becomes undeniable in your style.
Curry feels that if that talent leads to winning, it becomes a collective effort. This unlocks it, unleashes it, and allows you to uplift players around you. Curry describes it as a two-way street.
Audacity Fuels Greatness
Curry believes you can’t find greatness without finding your voice. That can mean vocalising in the locker room and on the court. It also means playing your game without doubt and trusting your experimentation.
Curry asks if you can dare yourself to do what nobody else is doing. Audacity, he says, is the fuel that propels great talents to unforeseen heights.
“That happens just because you’re not who you are without that,” Curry said. “Talent can only take you so far with God-given attributes. But he seems more vocal than I was at the time, like at this stage. And obviously, he’s the number one pick, so it’s a different trajectory than what I took in a little earlier development, but the same kind of vibe.”
Wembanyama Shapes Spurs’ Identity
Wembanyama shaped the Spurs’ identity from preseason media day. He declared that defence was non-negotiable. Soon after, the Spurs had one of the league’s best defences. He declared they would be a playoff team; now they’re in the hunt for the NBA’s best record — 58-18 after Wednesday’s 127-113 win against a Warriors team playing without the injured Curry.
“A team has a true identity built around you that might be ahead of schedule, and so you kind of throw everything you have at it,” Curry said. “To that point, his spirit, I’m sure, when he walks into that locker room, everybody has the belief that they can win. That’s hard to find, too.”
It’s not hard for Harrison Barnes to believe. He’s seen the warning signs of upheaval. Barnes was on the Warriors’ first championship team with Curry.
- Victor Wembanyama had his second straight 40-point, 15-rebound game on Wednesday against the Warriors.
- He is the first Spurs player to accomplish that.
In just his third year, Wembanyama has already become the next basketball revolution.