Victor Wembanyama Reaching Michael Jordan’s Level Will End Rivals’ Title Dreams, Say Analysts

San Antonio Spurs' superstar center Victor Wembanyama's Game 1 exploits against the Thunder left the basketball world in awe.

Victor Wembanyama Reaching Michael Jordan’s Level Will End Rivals’ Title Dreams, Say Analysts

Michael Jordan and Victor Wembanyama (Image via FirstSportz)

In Short
  • Victor Wembanyama is being compared to Michael Jordan due to his dominant performance in the NBA.
  • Analysts predict that if Wembanyama stays healthy, he could prevent other teams from winning championships.
  • His unique training with Shaolin monks has contributed to his exceptional skills and conditioning.

Ever since Michael Jordan retired as a Chicago Bull, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James have tried, but never got close to his dominance. Now, some believe Victor Wembanyama is about to be the rightful heir.

Bryant was almost a carbon copy of His Airness. That had an impact on the overall opinion surrounding him. Then, the King’s sheer lack of championships has stopped him from truly being dominant in the way Jordan was.

But in the Frenchman’s case, he is just three years into the league, and after his unbelievable performance in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, some believe he could get into Jordan’s tier.

This guy’s best ability, his most special attribute, may be what we don’t see and what burns inside. If he does have what he’s been displaying, he reminds me of Michael Jordan.

Rich Eisen said on his namesake show

The longtime analyst pointed out how Victor Wembanyama has ball-handling and shooting abilities similar to Stephen Curry. Then, his blocking is something no one has seen before in the league.

The sheer combination of that is why the 22-year-old looked like someone who could approach Michael Jordan’s tier of absolute dominance.

There was nothing the Oklahoma City Thunder could do to slow the former first-overall pick in Game 1, and that, if it continues, could become a problem for the league.

In fact, Rich Eisen opened the segment by remarking how OKC fans fell deaf silent whenever Wemby scored or blocked a shot. He believes that they, too, knew what they were witnessing.

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Max Kellerman believes NBA teams can forget fighting for titles against a healthy Victor Wembanyama

Rich Eisen is already seeing comparisons with Michael Jordan, which is saying a lot about Victor Wembanyama. What it also means is that the analyst is predicting that the center will be dominating most of the regular-season awards going forward.

If he stays healthy, pack it up, everybody! The time to win a championship was try to load up this year and do something. If Wemby stays healthy, no one is winning anything, forever! Stop playing basketball, the NBA is over.

Max Kellerman said on the Game Over podcast

This is the former First Take analyst adding another opinion about that dominance. He first pointed out how the Spurs superstar still needs to work on his post-up game.

In Game 1, most of his effectiveness came away from the basket. Once he works on his game and becomes proficient at going up against and dominating smaller defenders in the post, it will be time for the league to pack it up.

Max Kellerman believes that is the only negative in Victor Wembanyama’s game so far. Once that is developed, and he avoids the health scares from last season, NBA titles could become out of reach for everybody else.

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Victor Wembanyama’s insane training with monks helped him develop

After Victor Wembanyama dominated Game 1 in the manner that he did, Kendrick Perkins sent SportsCenter host Nicole Briscoe into stitches when he mentioned that he and his wife were thinking of sending their children to the monks.

Victor Wembanyama training in China
Victor Wembanyama training in China (Image via IG)

One day, he told Wembanyama to dribble a basketball up another dangerous mountain route… The hike traversed cliffside plank paths, suspension bridges, and ancient forests… The trail forces you to climb roughly 2,500 feet in elevation across uneven ridges and stone.

Ramona Shelburne wrote

It seems Perkins was aware of this article at the time, which detailed how Wemby’s training with the Shaolin monks was not just a PR exercise.

Ramona Shelburne added that Master Yan’an, the monk who trained Wembanyama, remarked that it usually takes an average person eight hours to complete that route.

The Spurs center did it in four and a half, all while dribbling a basketball. That should be enough to convince anyone of his ‘alien’ abilities.

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