SAN ANTONIO, Texas — San Antonio has many murals and statues across the city honoring their historic No. 1 overall NBA draft pick, Victor Wembanyama. The 19-year-old French native is the first No. 1 overall pick for the Spurs since Tim Duncan and David Robinson.
The 7-foot-4 rookie forward made his NBA debut Wednesday night against the Dallas Mavericks, and although he played in preseason games, nothing could prepare him for this historic game.
“Lots of emotions, of course, but would have been perfect with a win,” Wembanyama said.
A 126-119 loss for the Spurs against the Mavericks was still a win for San Antonio. More so for fans who were anxious to see the rookie take center stage. Wemby did not make his first bucket just under four minutes into the game on a 26-foot 3-pointer that gave the Spurs a 13-7 lead.
“It’s great to see his point percentage," Joshua Vela, a Spurs Fan, said. "Also, how dominant he is against the big centers of the NBA.”
“His defense. I want to see the blocks," Henry Delapaz, a Spurs Fan, said. "I want to see the steals. I want to see that live. I’m really excited for that.”
“I want to see Luka Doncic step back over him," John Pena, Mavericks Fan, said. "I need to see that one.”
Wembanyama ended his Spurs debut with 15 points, including three 3-pointers. 9 of his points fell in the fourth quarter after getting five early fouls.
“I thought his maturity showed even at a young age when he came in with the last 7 minutes and just played," Gregg Popovich, Spurs head coach, said. "We ran some stuff for him. He executed. Where a lot of guys would have totally been out of it by then. I think he had a wonderful outing.”
Doing what he does best, from making dunks to alley-oops.
“I think since I wasn’t very aggressive. I couldn’t really be in the first half," Wembanyama said. "I could get a couple of buckets by surprising the opponents because they’re more focused in the moment on my teammates that I have in the moment, so this is how the team works.”
Up next, the Spurs host the Rockets on Friday, but so far, fans like what they see from the NBA’s No. 1 overall draft pick.
“He’s making the Dallas Mavericks force shots, and he’s just doing what we expected him to do," Miguel Altamirano III, Spurs fan, said. "I mean on top of the points and steals and blocks and rebounds that he’s doing. He’s doing amazing.”
As a team, Popovich was not happy with the turnovers. 19 total and 12 in the second half alone. That was a game-changer that will need to be adjusted moving forward.
Mavericks' star Luka Doncic led the floor with 33 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists. While Spurs' Devin Vassell led San Antonio with 23 points.
