Mychal Thompson on Victor Wembanyama hype: To say he's the greatest prospect ever is ridiculous
I understand Victor Wembanyama is an entirely different player and has received much more hype. But as a former No. 1 pick from another country, what was it like dealing with that pressure? Mychal Thompson: “There are no similarities to me. When I came into this league, nobody cared. He has come into this league as the most hyped prospect in NBA history. It’s even more so than LeBron James because of social media and the exposure he has had in the last few years. Even though he played in France, everybody in America and every basketball player in the world knows about him. To say he is the greatest prospect ever is ridiculous. They’re putting him over LeBron and even Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) and Wilt Chamberlain. You can’t do that. That’s unfair to Victor. He’s going to be an excellent player. He’s going to be a Hall-of-Famer. He’s going to be a multiple-time All-Star. But give the kid a chance to grow before you claim him to be the NBA savior. He’s going to be great. But give him a chance to grow.”
Source: Mark Medina @ SportsKeeda
Source: Mark Medina @ SportsKeeda
What’s the buzz on Twitter?
Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
Part 2 of my talk w/ Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) for @Sportskeeda on the Bahamian national team’s success, being the first foreign player drafted at No. 1, Victor Wembanyama’s hype and some Michael Jordan stories bit.ly/47Ti7yO pic.twitter.com/U6ypwNEmRB – 4:15 PM
Part 2 of my talk w/ Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) for @Sportskeeda on the Bahamian national team’s success, being the first foreign player drafted at No. 1, Victor Wembanyama’s hype and some Michael Jordan stories bit.ly/47Ti7yO pic.twitter.com/U6ypwNEmRB – 4:15 PM
Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
Part 2 of my talk w/ Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) on the Bahamian national team’s success, being the first foreign player drafted at No. 1, Victor Wembanyama’s hype and some Michael Jordan stories bit.ly/47Ti7yO pic.twitter.com/HqrEISTVsG – 4:11 PM
Part 2 of my talk w/ Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) on the Bahamian national team’s success, being the first foreign player drafted at No. 1, Victor Wembanyama’s hype and some Michael Jordan stories bit.ly/47Ti7yO pic.twitter.com/HqrEISTVsG – 4:11 PM
RJ Marquez @KSATRJ
Per @GoldinCo, an ultra-rare Victor Wembanyama rookie card sold for over $67K, setting record for most expensive Wemby card ever. The card is a SuperFractor Rookie Card that Wembanyama signed, inscribed with ‘1st Ever.’ The limited-edition piece is serial-numbered 1/1. #GoSpursGo pic.twitter.com/27IDFa4EjW – 2:09 PM
Per @GoldinCo, an ultra-rare Victor Wembanyama rookie card sold for over $67K, setting record for most expensive Wemby card ever. The card is a SuperFractor Rookie Card that Wembanyama signed, inscribed with ‘1st Ever.’ The limited-edition piece is serial-numbered 1/1. #GoSpursGo pic.twitter.com/27IDFa4EjW – 2:09 PM
Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) to @Sportskeeda on @KlayThompson’s future w/ the @warriors: “For him, Draymond & Steph should never wear another uniform. Or should never have to wear another uniform. That also goes for Kevon Looney, too.” bit.ly/3syADwc pic.twitter.com/YR9AQPtlag – 11:41 AM
Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) to @Sportskeeda on @KlayThompson’s future w/ the @warriors: “For him, Draymond & Steph should never wear another uniform. Or should never have to wear another uniform. That also goes for Kevon Looney, too.” bit.ly/3syADwc pic.twitter.com/YR9AQPtlag – 11:41 AM
Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) to @Sportskeeda on @KlayThompson’s long-term future with Warriors: “Him, Draymond and Steph should never wear another uniform.” bit.ly/3syADwc – 4:38 PM
Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) to @Sportskeeda on @KlayThompson’s long-term future with Warriors: “Him, Draymond and Steph should never wear another uniform.” bit.ly/3syADwc – 4:38 PM
Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
Part 1 of my interview w/ Mychal Thompson for @Sportskeeda. Mychal shares his outlook on Klay’s season, his future & whether he will play for Bahamas. Mychal on Klay’s future w/ Warriors: “Him, Draymond and Steph should never wear another uniform.” bit.ly/3syADwc pic.twitter.com/VD7OoS0JqZ – 2:16 PM
Part 1 of my interview w/ Mychal Thompson for @Sportskeeda. Mychal shares his outlook on Klay’s season, his future & whether he will play for Bahamas. Mychal on Klay’s future w/ Warriors: “Him, Draymond and Steph should never wear another uniform.” bit.ly/3syADwc pic.twitter.com/VD7OoS0JqZ – 2:16 PM
More on this storyline
What are reasonable expectations for him for his rookie season? Mychal Thompson: “I hope Victor Wembanyama can play at least 75 games, or really every game. If the Spurs want, they can load-manage him, take it easy on him, and play him fewer minutes in some games as his body adjusts to the NBA. I expect him to be in competition for Rookie of the Year. But there are going to be a lot of good rookies this year. It will be between him and Scoot Henderson vying for Rookie of the Year.” -via SportsKeeda / August 31, 2023
What’s impressed you about Scoot Henderson? Mychal Thompson: “Scoot is good. If Portland trades Damian Lillard, that means the team is in his hands. He’s legit and fun to watch. He’s a combination of Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, Ja Morant, and Dwyane Wade.” A lot of people in G League Ignite and Scoot’s trainer don’t sound concerned about his shooting. How do you look at that? Thompson: “His shooting will improve. Everybody’s shooting gets better. That’s just drilling, practicing, and muscle memory. He’ll get better as a shooter. But he finds so many ways to score. So even as it takes time for his shot to catch up to his other skills, he’ll be fine.” -via SportsKeeda / August 31, 2023
Though the Warriors may not Klay Thompson to an extension before he becomes a free agent next summer, Mychal Thompson maintained optimism that Klay will remain with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green on the Warriors for the rest of his NBA career. …. Mychal Thompson: “It makes sense. For him, Draymond and Steph should never wear another uniform. Or should never have to wear another uniform. That also goes for Kevon Looney, too. That boy is a Warrior through and through. He needs to retire as a Warrior after another 10 or 12 more years, too.” -via SportsKeeda / August 30, 2023
Tommy Beer: This 1-of-1 Victor Wembanyama signed rookie card sold for $67,333 in a @GoldinCo actuation tonight. That’s the highest amount ever paid for a Wembanyama card pic.twitter.com/DNdohF2HGZ -via Twitter @TommyBeer / August 31, 2023
Matthew Tynan: Spurs have released their finalized preseason schedule. We’ve known about the last four games for a while, but the OKC game is a recent addition. That game will be on NBA TV btw… pic.twitter.com/AmcOE5mquh -via Twitter @Matthew_Tynan / August 30, 2023