In a resounding victory for the San Antonio Spurs last season, Victor Wembanyama exposed the flaws in the Toronto Raptors‘ decision-making. Why didn’t the Toronto Raptors make more of an effort to sign Victor Wembanyama?
It might not have been successful. Perhaps last year’s San Antonio Spurs were meant to be lottery winners. Nonetheless, Toronto’s procedure was faulty.
There’s no justification for Toronto to have been purchasers at the previous season’s trade deadline. Looking back, it was a terrible move that cost Toronto leverage in negotiations for Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby. The Raptors’ failure to at least attempt to increase their lottery odds despite knowing they were about to witness a once-in-a-generation talent was even more concerning.
How big a deal is losing Victor Wmbanyama?
To make it short, the real stuff is Wembanyama. In an incredible performance that included 27 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 blocks, he terrorized the Raptors on both ends in a 122-99 victory over Toronto.
“A unicorn,” was how Gradey Dick attempted to characterize Wembanyama. “You just don’t see guys that size that can do what he does.”
Early on Monday night, the chatter about Wembanyama began. Nearly an hour before tipoff, fans flocked to Scotiabank Arena to watch the Frenchman start working out. It seemed as though Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, or Steph Curry were present in the structure. But rather than being an MVP contender, this 20-year-old sensation was still rising through the NBA ranks.
When tipoff finally arrived, Wembanyama did not let us down. Spurs guard Devin Vassell said,
“He just makes the game so much easier,” “When he rolls to the basket there’s so many eyes that’s going there and when he has the ball in his hands, so many eyes, so much attention. So just feeding off him, playing off him today was easy. That’s all I can say.”
