Victor Wembanyama Talks Rookie Season & Impersonates Shaq | Inside the NBA

Victor Wembanyama Talks Rookie Season & Impersonates Shaq | Inside the NBA

Star weekend here in the Rising Stars last night where uh he played for po Gasol got beat by the g-league team and um what you lost to the G League you didn’t know that no I didn’t know to know that no I didn’t know that I wasn’t

Watching I was at the hookah bar my boy I was at the hookah bar and uh and tonight in the skills competition and uh Hey look it’s been a pleasure to watch you this uh this first half of the Season look forward to seeing and what

You do tonight in the in the skills competition but tell me about this you just turned 20 tell me about this uh first year in the NBA and this this first experience uh being all over the United States man uh first of all I’m happy to be here thanks for having me

And uh it’s been a pleasure also to to be on that court and experience this I mean all these experiences you know I’ve learned so much in just a couple months more than in any little span like this beener in my life and it’s I mean it’s

Been just living the dream you know but it’s been a lot of challenges it’s been hard but I wouldn’t want it to be easy Kenny says this all the time that we’re products of our environment I say that to say this when I was your age 17 18 19

I watched Patrick Yan David Robinson Kem Abdul Jabar with all the skills that you have who did you watch growing up man I mean the thing is one of my coaches always said I’ve never looked myself in the mirror because I’ve I’ve been looking at guys that don’t only have the

Same body as me you know I mean nobody has the same body as me so I’ve been watching guards Steph Curry LeBron James I’ve been watching yanis KD so pretty much everyone without ever wondering if I was allowed to do this because you know Victor you you we talk

About how difficult it is and what the challenges are what has been the easy part what has been the part not even easy one you said man this part I got that part and when I came and I I’m a little surprised oh I know I had

It um it’s got to be the the competitiveness you know like uh it’s sometimes hard to realize this is already the highest level basketball apart from playoffs obviously in the world you know and it’s like I know I just know I can mess with the best in

The in the sport now it’s uh it’s a certitude before I knew I could do it but I just had never met this much talent before but now I know it’s uh like a I’m nowhere near but on the right path you know to becoming one of the

Greats you know I said the toughest thing for you this year was going to be losing I says I don’t know anything about the French league where he was part by I said but this probably the first time in your life you ever lost consistently or lost when he played well

Well yeah no but I’m talking about just losing so how have you been able to do to to keep your mindset and not let it bother you I mean obviously it’s going to bother you but how is it is it adjust to losing so I think actually this has been

The one of the hard things you know this season um not only losing but because you know every game we still comeing the court we want to win like everyone is locked in there’s no nobody expects to lose when we step on the court even when playing against the first seed or the

14th seed yeah and uh you know it’s um it’s it’s it’s has actually been one of the most difficult things is to to be ready to for the battle every night you know and uh after that to you know to just get over it because we got another

One tomorrow we got another one 48 hours so this has been one of the toughest battles and I didn’t think this would be as tough a battle on the me mental aspect I thought it would be harder on the body uh Victor tell me this because

When you when you make your NBA debut you’re a 19yearold and you’ve got the oldest coach in the league Pops in his 70s tell me what the relationship’s been like what have you learned about pop what did you heard about pop before playing for pop and and what are your

Impressions I mean years back obviously you know with the all the French guys who’ve been through San Antonio it’s uh I mean I’ve always thought po was the best coach in the world even way way years before being drafted so it’s uh I had high expectations but he’s I mean

He’s Liv up to those expectations in my eyes because he’s just been so first of all he cares a lot he hasn’t been only a good uh technical you know analyst and coach and smart you know he’s also been caring about me and actually trying to know me

The like the first thing the first thing he talked to me about it wasn’t basketball you know he was trying to make me comfortable in in my new you know new country new city new everything what’s what’s the what’s the roughest he’s been on you that he really got on you I

Mean you know when we talk privately he knows I’m like I’m I understand I’m I’m smart you know I’m trying to I’m trying to do my best you know but sometimes he’s trying to send messages and like uh yeah sometimes like I remember maybe two 3 months into the

Season we were in film in front of everybody and he goes like yeah what this this is this is what you were doing day one why why did you take well do you take a step back you got to keep getting better like so yeah sometimes he he

Sends messages like like it how how much time welcome the cable TV hey hey how much time you good you’re cool man don’t worry about how much time did you spend in the States before you got to the NBA how much time a month oh no like in

Your life how many how many times a month about a month yeah I went I went on vacation that’s it okay eight months before okay Vic uh has the great Tim Duncan and David Robinson came and had a convers conversation with you and showed you a few things and if

So what I want to know what they showed you yeah they did you know the first actually my first first night in San Antonio I’ve seen them regularly after that but the first night uh T Tim David Robinson Sean Elliott uh Manu they they all had dinner with me and it’s uh yeah

They shared they shared a lot you know um about how the conditions were when where they were playing and how to you know overcome all the yeah the hard things you know during the season and uh I mean but we just we just talked and shared personal experiences you know

That that was really casual you know they told me about at the time they didn’t have a a charter and they had to fly commercial to I don’t know how many cities a year and I’ll tell you about that brother I’m only I’m the only player up here who flew commercial these

Guys all been private you had one year hey um look at this I know you you spent some time with our social team yesterday and uh we got to we we have the opportunity to hear Victor’s uh sha impersonation oh let’s roll this that was good even I haven’t seen

That’s that’s cool all right great education yeah cuz I told him I didn’t want to get a certain vehicle because of the amount of gas I would have to spend it cost like $80 to fill it upill it up and he said when it gets to half then you put $20 you bring

It back to full when it gets to half then you put $20 you bring it back to full but if I keep do I would have to stop my office 80 no you wouldn’t no you wouldn’t why you’re complaining about when it gets to zero you spend 80 you’re

Complaining about when it gets to zero you spend 80 when it gets to half you put 20 and when it get back to half you put 20 again equal 80 the same amount of gas I’m driving the same amount of gas Kenny the average human stops once a week for gas

Right but you you only walk him twice you would probably have to stop once every two weeks I don’t even try the average is that’s that was the funniest part the average human it’s called top it off so yo y y it’s called This is why my brain

Is here and you do not take this advice from it’s called miles per gallon it’s called topping it off get an electric car Shaq people know yeah you top it off hey what are your what do your teammates call look at that they call they call do

Your teammates call you wimy or do they got another name for you Marilyn dubinsky I don’t remember you call me Vic Vic yeah more more Vic sometimes w we appreciate you very much I never F GE F thank you so much guyson said what’s up look at little fell man

Man sh Shaq he might have gave it to you talk about that when he leaves

Victor Wembanyama joined Ernie, Shaq, Charles, and Kenny on Inside the NBA at 2024 All-Star Weekend to talk his rookie season so far, playing for Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, his Shaq impersonation, and more.

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