Would Giannis be worth #1 Overall Pick Victor Wembanyama?
Just because you don’t know about French prospect and possible NBA Superstar Victor Wembanyama doesn’t mean he won’t be great. The question in most NBA circles is, “how great will he actually be?” To find a 19 yr old, 7’4” point forward who is as swift as Wembanyama is, of course, obviously quite rare.
The point with this exercise is to think more in terms of how much of a tear-down the Bucks franchise should undergo. Giannis Antetokounmpo is considered “untouchable” by many fans and by the Bucks franchise themselves.
But would Giannis be worth #1 Overall Pick Victor Wembanyama? Is that the “total tear-down” the franchise needs?
Related: Giannis Pastoral- JA vs Giannis at 4am
The Set-Up
The end of the season for the Milwaukee Bucks was about as brutal of an end as anyone could have expected. The franchise was built to be able to compete for an NBA Championship. Expectations were high. Instead, their season is over after having lost to the #8 seed 4 games to 1. At no point was the series even close for Miami and the Heat were able to put down a complete beating on Milwaukee.
Milwaukee at times looked old, slow, and unable to create shots.
Wembanyama is the exact opposite of that. He is young, fast and raw. And a 7’4”, he simply needs to be paired with a decent rebounding big and a quick point guard to all but guarantee championship level play.
With so much roster upheaval impending, other than Giannis, it seems like some major changes are possible. With talk around Giannis Antetokounmpo possibly leaving or at least not resigning an extension any time soon, could the Bucks go for a full rebuild? What would be more of a rebuild than trading one of the world’s greatest players for one of the world’s greatest basketball prospects?
Who is Victor Wembanyama?
Considered by many NBA scouts as a “generational talent”, Wembanyama is 19 years old and plays professionally in France. And unlike Giannis, there is a ton of tape and highlights available to view. (See below). He plays fast, shoots like a shooting guard and ends up having silly dunks because of his 7’4” frame. Basketball commentator Bill Simmons has nicknamed him “the alien” because he looks so unusual being so big but playing so fast.
Wembanyama possesses the ability to shot the three and rim protect. That is a skill-set that is very desirable in today’s NBA. But will he be “injury-prone”? Similar to Chet Holmgren? He might; only time would tell. But he seems to have a work ethic and drive similar to Giannis. For any team that can take him, that bodes well for the future.
It seems clear he will be able to dominate the NBA ways we have not really seen since Wilt Chamberlin.
When will the NBA know what team Wembanyama will be on?
The 2023 NBA Draft Lottery will be held on May 16th. The winner will have the right to pick future 7’ 4” superstar Victor Wembanyama
Right now the Detroit Pistons, Houston Rockets, and San Antonio Spurs all have a 14% chance to be able to own the rights to Wembanyama. Charlotte and Portland also have over a 10% chance. Could you imagine him paired with Dame Lillard or LaMelo Ball? How exciting!
Giannis vs Victor- Who wins?
Milwaukee is going to keep Giannis, of course. They should; it is the right thing to do.
He has proven his championship mettle! He is a winner. The film “Rise” is something you watch as a Bucks fan and can’t believe that guy plays on our team. Plus Wembanyama might be injury-prone or just not be any better than say a Yao Ming.
But when we really reflect on what a disastrous season this was we all just witnessed, how much of a rebuild should the Bucks go through? Some basketball critics and media personalities have put out the idea that Milwaukee should just run it back with everyone. Old and slow. That seems like a dangerous idea to me. It feels like the window on this team has closed.
So, in order to re-open things, it might be prudent to get a Wembanyama and some first round picks. Maybe, just maybe, GM Jon Horst can work his magic and re-build around Giannis for the 2023-2024 season. Get some more shooting. For now, we will all wait and see, watching NBA playoff basketball without the Milwaukee Bucks.
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