Is Victor Wembanyama of France the next Kobe, Kevin Durant or LeBron?

Is Victor Wembanyama the next Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant or LeBron James?

No, and he doesn’t have to be.

He doesn’t have to live up to the hype and be a “generational talent” or “revolutionary player”. He doesn’t have to enter the Hall of Fame after his first season. He doesn’t have to carry the entire league.

He’s only the number one draft choice of a franchise, not the entire franchise. If history matters, only three top picks have become Finals MVP: Shaq, Tim Duncan and LeBron. So, the NBA and San Antonio fans shouldn’t expect him to immediately lead the team back to the title.

Wemby only has to make his team significantly better. I believe he’ll do that, if he can stay healthy.

It’s a big if. Some NBA pundits are concerned about his thin 7’5” frame and size 20 feet. They note the injuries to Ralph Sampson, Greg Oden, Chet Holmgren and other top prospects of similar size. While Wembanyama set FIBA records for blocks at the FIBA under-19 championships, he missed a lot of FIBA games and also French league games with injuries to his shoulder, back and leg. It’s easy to predict that Draymond Green and other enforcers will beat him up or push him around down low.

But this assumes that the Spurs will use him down low like Rudy Gobert. They might not do that. They might use his length more like the Toronto Raptors use Chris Boucher as a pass deflector and shot blocker on the perimeter. Indeed, Wemby used his 8-foot wingspan to block shots by fellow top prospect Scoot Henderson of the G-league Ignite.

Spurs’ fans will compare him with Tim Duncan and even George Gervin. The Iceman was often considered too long and thin for the rugged NBA in the 70s, but he turned out to be one of the greatest scoring machines ever. Wemby already looks like a taller version of Gervin.

Will Wemby become the next KD? That’s a tall order (pardon the pun). KD has incredible powers of concentration, efficiency and leadership. He was the go-to guy on Team USA from the 2010 FIBA world championships onward. He took over Olympic finals against Spain. He nearly beat the Golden State Warriors in NBA playoffs and then joined the Warriors and won NBA titles with them.

KD lived up to the expectations coming out of the University of Texas. NBA players already knew him well. They knew about LeBron and scrimmaged with him when he was still in high school. It’s not the same for Wemby. He’s been playing in France, not in the NCAA or G-league. This alone creates doubt about him. Can he withstand the grind of playing 80 or 90 games in a season, including playoffs?

There were also doubts about Giannis Antetokoumpo. He eventually proved them wrong, but it took some time for Giannis to lead the Bucks to the championship.

The Spurs, who saved Kawhi Leonard’s body through “load management”, will likely protect Wemby early in his career. If they can give him time to grow and develop, he could truly become a superstar, if not a “generational player”.