On August 7th, Beijing time, former NBA legend Garnett shared a photo of himself with Spurs rookie Wembanyama. It is reported that the two are training together. For Wembanyama, this summer has been quite enriching; he had spent 10 days at a Shaolin temple practicing martial arts and is now training with this historically significant big player.
Undoubtedly, Wembanyama has showcased impressive performance in his two-year professional career so far. Over two seasons, he has averaged 22.5 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 3.7 blocks per game. However, learning from legendary players always brings valuable insights.
Wembanyama is determined to become a top-tier player and eager to learn from those historical superstars. This is evident from his relationships with Spurs legends Tim Duncan and David Robinson. Training with some of the best big men in NBA history will undoubtedly elevate Wembanyama's skills.
The area where Garnett is most likely to help Wembanyama improve may be his inside game.Despite standing at 2.21 meters, Wembanyama's three-point attempts (8.8) are almost equal to his two-point attempts (9.9). This is partly due to the Spurs relying on his shooting ability and also reflects Wembanyama's lack of aggression in the paint—he averages only 5 attempts near the basket per game.Garnett has publicly stated that Wembanyama should enhance his strength and be more aggressive in scoring in the paint.
Garnett was a dominant inside scorer with unparalleled intensity in games. Training with Garnett could potentially unleash Wembanyama's potential in this area. Garnett may also assist Wembanyama in refining his back-to-basket skills. Although this technique has somewhat faded in today’s league, Wembanyama's height makes it an efficient scoring method against defenders. With Duncan and Robinson's guidance, Wembanyama's skills are expected to improve significantly.
Last season, Wembanyama averaged 24.3 points, 11 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 3.8 blocks per game over 46 games. However, he missed the later part of the season due to a blood clot issue. Reports indicate that Wembanyama has fully recovered and is ready for the upcoming new season. As he enters his third professional season, there are high expectations for Wembanyama to make a leap in his performance. Now, after training with Garnett, this possibility seems even greater.
Wembanyama is a player who genuinely dedicates himself to mastering basketball; while addressing his weaknesses, he is also learning from historical superstars, which is bound to make other teams in the league wary. He is already a highly dominant player with a unique playing style, but even more astonishing is that Wembanyama still has room for improvement. In his third season, there is reason to believe he could rank in the top five or even top three in MVP voting, especially with the Spurs' overall strength likely to increase significantly.