NBA fans question ‘ludicrous’ Wembanyama hype as Spurs suffer 15th straight defeat

Victor Wembanyama had a night to forget against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday.

The San Antonio Spurs rookie finished with 12 points on just 4-of-13 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds in a 102-94 loss.

Meanwhile, his French teammate, three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert, dominated the game, finishing with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting as well as a whopping 21 rebounds.

It was a gentle reminder of the incredibly high standards in the NBA and the levels required each and every night.

Wemby has only played in 18 games, but his struggles against the T-Wolves meant some fans were tempering expectations around him this season.

“Wemby a bust,” said one particularly reactionary fan on social media.

“Gobert having his way with Wemby. Great team ball to pull Wemby out,” said another.

“I’m sure he’ll end up being a very good player, but we need to recognize how ludicrous the Victor Wembanyama hype was,” a third commented.

“Some calling him the greatest prospect of all-time. Some saying they’d take Wembanyama over LeBron James if they were in the same draft class… Foolishness.”

“Wemby has to be better defensively, letting Gobert bully you like that is unacceptable, a fourth responded.

“Victor Wembanyama continues to disappoint but i think much goes on the team… they cannot figure it out how to play with Wemby,” a fifth weighed in with.

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The reaction is probably a little harsh – the start of Wemby’s NBA career was always going to be difficult given the Spurs’ current predicament.

There’s a reason they got the No.1 overall draft pick and it’s not because they’re a good basketball team.

However, as they build around Wemby and he gets a feeling for the league, the expectation is Gregg Popovich’s team will naturally become more competitive.

San Antonio were also coming up against a Timberwolves team who have started the season red hot and are top of the Western Conference with a 16-4 record. They won’t be facing teams like that every night.

There were also some positives to take from Wembys performance. The 19-year-old recorded a block meaning he has now reached 50 total blocks and 25 total steals on the season, becoming the first player this year to reach those totals in both categories.

He’ll undoubtedly have better games in the future, but he’s still averaging a respectable 19.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game while shooting 43.7% from the floor.

The Spurs, however, have struggled to win games, losing 15 straight and dropping to 3-17 for the season.

They face the 8-14 Chicago Bulls next.