Wemby Watch: Victor Wembanyama meets NHL's Connor Bedard ahead of 1st Christmas in San Antonio
Victor Wembanyama was deemed unfit to participate in Saturday’s game in Dallas due to an ankle sprain he sustained during warmups.
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Stay up to date on No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama during his rookie campaign with the San Antonio Spurs. A new Wemby Watch drops every Sunday during the season. Here’s what we saw this week:
Spreading holiday cheer
The Wembanayma family traveled from France to celebrate Christmas in the rookie’s new San Antonio home. They even purchased their first set of stockings for the holiday because in France, the American staple isn’t utilized.
Wemby called them “socks” when describing the experience.
“For my family, it’s the important time of the year,” he said. “This is when we all reunite. We got some (stockings) for the first time because we’re in the States now. So, we’ve got to adapt.”
Victor Wembanyama discusses celebrating his first Christmas in Texas with his family.
Wembanyama sat out of San Antonio’s 144-119 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday after spraining his right ankle as a result of landing on a ball boy’s foot during warmups. Despite the 19-year-old’s desire to play, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich decided to sideline the rookie as a precautionary measure.
Having lost four in a row, San Antonio gets the day off for Christmas before facing the Utah Jazz on Tuesday at Frost Bank Center (8 ET, NBA League Pass).
On the road ✈️
During his first trip to Chicago as a member of the Spurs, the rookie met up with another No. 1 pick: NHL phenom and Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard.
Our No. 1 overall pick learning hockey from the @NHL's No. 1 overall pick!
Victor Wembanyama Connor Bedard pic.twitter.com/7kAvPmRpgT
— NBA (@NBA) December 21, 2023
“It’s not often, almost never, that I get to meet people so great that have so many similarities with myself,” Wembayama said.
The 19-year-old Spurs rookie and Bedard, 18, are widely considered the future of their respective sports. At age 13, Bedard received an exceptional status from Hockey Canada to play junior hockey before turning 16. He became the top pick of the Western Hockey League before leaving at 18 for the NHL.
Bedard currently leads the Blackhawks (and all NHL rookies) in points (30), goals (13) and assists (17).
One stat to know
Wembanyama tallied his eighth-consecutive double-double in a 146-110 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. That surpassed Dwight Howard (seven double-doubles in 2005) for the most in NBA history by a teenager.
The streak would end just four days later Thursday in a loss at Chicago.
It’s worth noting he played just 22 minutes, his second-lowest minutes total of the season.
1-man highlight reel
Despite the aforementioned season-low scoring performance (seven points), Wembanyama dished out five assists that night including this ridiculous no-look, behind-the-head dime to Jeremy Sochan.
Take a look.
THE PASS. THE FINISH pic.twitter.com/sGQdxcVntb
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) December 22, 2023
Praise from another No. 1 pick
Last Sunday, Wembanyama faced off against the top overall pick of the 2019 NBA Draft in Zion Williamson, and the Pelicans forward offered a word of advice.
Williamson said he’s spoken with Wembanyama’s father, Felix, on multiple occasions in Paris.
“My advice would be to just keep focusing on your craft,” Williamson said. “You didn’t get that hype for no reason. Keep your head on straight, and you’ll be fine.”
The former Duke star later broke down Wembanyama’s game and future prospects.
“He’s gonna be a matchup nightmare because he can get his shot off whenever he wants,” Williamson said. “The more he plays in the NBA-style offense, the better he’ll get. His presence alone can alter a lot of shots.”
In the spotlight
Nike Paris announced its upcoming drop of an “unidentified” Wembanyama collector’s item with the French phenom’s No. 1 jersey in a cosmic screen.
The sneaker giant plans to release just 15 in the world.
Wembanyama is one of 13 rookies from the 2023 Draft Class to sign with Nike.
What he’s reading
We mentioned a while back that Wembanyama was reading a fantasy novel by author Brandon Sanderson called “The Stormlight Archive.”
Wembanyama revealed later that Sanderson is his favorite author and provided more details regarding his obsession with reading.
“I actually wondered how many books I’ve read in the last 12 months,” he said. “Very early on, before elementary school, is when I started reading. I liked books, basically. So, I read a lot during elementary school. In middle school, I read less and started again in high school.”
How often does Wemby read?
“I do it every day,” he said. “I don’t have to think about doing it. I just want to do it.”
Circle on calendar
Scoot Henderson, the No. 3 pick in 2023, is set to face off against Wembanyama twice this week. The Spurs travel to Portland to take on the Trail Blazers in a two-game, back-to-back set on Thursday (10 ET) and Friday (10 ET). Catch both of the matchups on NBA League Pass.
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Michael C. Wright is a senior writer for NBA.com. E-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
Michaela Gilmer is a producer for NBA.com.
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