Joel Embiid Had an Adorable Reaction After Seeing Victor Wembanyama Up Close for the First Time
Monday night saw two of the most entertaining big men in the NBA go head-to-head for the first time as the Philadelphia 76ers hosted the San Antonio Spurs.
Reigning MVP Joel Embiid got his first look at Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama just before the game, and safe to say, Embiid was impressed.
Standing 7’4”, Wembanyama is one of the few players in the league that Embiid looks up to when on the court. The 20-year-old Frenchman has been quite the human highlight reel through his rookie year so far, and Embiid didn’t shy away from the fact that he might have a challenge ahead of him.
Before the game began, Embiid slyly sidled over to the Spurs’ side of the court during warm-ups. Cameras caught him as he appeared to try and see how he sized up next to Wembanyama while going undetected. As he walked away, Embiid raised his eyebrows with an expression that seemed to say, “Wow, he really is that tall, huh.”
Embiid's first look at @wemby ????????????#PorVida | @Spurs | @BallySports ???? pic.twitter.com/tAWPRXl4Gi
— Bally Sports San Antonio (@BallySportsSA) January 23, 2024
Wembanyama still has a long way to go before he reaches the heights that Embiid has reached in his career, but it feels like a pretty good bet that Wemby’s name will get tossed around in the MVP conversation in the coming years at some point.
That said, Embiid got the better of the rookie early, exploding for 24 points in the first quarter of their debut meeting.
The 76ers and Spurs will meet up again in April, and if both big men are healthy, they can face off once again. Here’s to many more meetings between the two.