Something to keep in mind is that sports medicine has evolved greatly the last couple of decades. Surguries that were once not available or were experimental, are now routine. I wish this young man a long and healthy career.
And it is precisely in the last two decades, as specified in the video, that we have seen a complete lack of 7’2+ players who can play without staggering amounts of injuries. Sports medicine has not evolved in a way that prevents long thin players from getting hurt. And the recoveries for the injuries they’re more susceptible to are very long. TL;DR, in the past few decades specifically, nothing has changed at all in regard to this topic. We can only wish the best for Wemby
@Kendall Hughes the only truth here is that you don't know what you're talking about and have 0 arguments. instead of stopping all you have left to say are insults. guess we've all been there at some point. when we were like 14yo.
@Kendall Hughes yao ming didn't grow after the age of 18 either. neither did shaq. he was 7'1 at his high school grad at the age of 18 and he was 7'1 when he entered the NBA 20yo. i've seen many more people and NBA prospects grow up than you. now tell me again how victor somehow "likely" will keep growing and how what i am saying "is not true at all". as far as i know he has no medical condition that makes him keep growing. maybe you know more than we do since you are in PA school ;) whatever the case, even the tallest people usually stop growing around the age of 17-18 with few exceptions. that's just how it works. tall people don't grow over a longer period, they just grow faster. whatever the case, if victor keeps growing he most likely will have no NBA career. we can only hope that you are wrong.
imo its not even just about height. it's about strength:height ratio. i'll say it now. that kids legs are not lasting if he does not put on at least 30 lbs of muscle and 10 lbs of healthy body fat to put some force into his step.
Wait till he gets to the NBA. He'll start having all these ankle and leg injuries. Like Porzingis. I'm betting he misses massive amounts of games and then fizzles.
Obviously the frame is worrying. However, the last time a tall skinny guy from Europe with a unique last name and great work ethic came into the league, he put on a ton of muscle weight and became the best player in the nba
@Cam C Most european players play for themselves that is why Dirk the best european player only got 1 ring while u can search for how many Duncan and Shaq got. This guy is the spaghetti dinner Zion has been looking for, he loves destroying everyone
Off the top of my head, Wilt Chamberlain. Good longevity and led NBA in minutes played 9 times. Chamberlain was a natural athlete but also put a huge emphasis on physical conditioning which I can imagine is critical for big men to avoid injury.
That injury risk is just something every team has to gamble with. Thats why prospects like him are protected from a very young age. By the looks of it, he has a great team around him. It's just amazing when the sporting world unearths gems like Victor Wembanyama 💯
you know who changed the NBA forever? Steph Curry…at a time when teams are looking for the next Jordan/Kobe or the next great big man as Shaq, Curry was silently driving defenses crazy and extending the range of shooting with accuracy…
yeah🤣 until he got destroyed by lebron james the 2nd times they fought and then force to get durant forming all stars players just to beat lebron.yeah🤣
@Mumbere Kahindo Soon NBA teams won’t be looking for the next great 7 footer. They’ll just be looking for people that can shoot the 3 ball. Don’t need a rebounder down low if you don’t miss. 3 pt percentage will get people drafted higher than height.
Agreed..it also, unfortunately, made everyone shoots from 3 when only him and a couple others should always favour the 3 over the 2..Most are now taking bad shot because they think they need to shoot the 3 every time..even on fastbreak..As amazing as Curry is (and he is amazing), I sometimes think that it hurt the game, making it a 3pt contest where teams take turn trying to connect on a 3...
Love your videos, especially this one! Masterfully paced and produced. Your voice is honey, and insightful comments and research are amazing. Thank you! As for the percentages being SERIOUSLY stacked against Victor, that is simply undeniable. I've been a lifelong Blazers fan since 1979, and I've seen Sam Bowie 7'2" out of Kentucky (drafted along with Jordan) break his leg at the actual game in Portland's Memorial Coliseum. Then we had Greg Oden - another #1 pick - go down with repeated knee injuries. Both were generational talents in their own right had they stayed healthy, and therein is the cruel rub - they simply can't. In Victor's case, he's obviously bright and coordinated, but he will need to add another 50 pounds in muscle to be in the NBA...and his height and frame will suffer as a result. The writing is on the wall. Perhaps the X factor in all of this is that sports medicine and treatments for high-end professional athletes have never been better, and I hope Victor can rely on science and medicine to extend his basketball career. Regardless of talent or physical stats, he seems like a really good human being. I am rooting for you Victor!
In Yao's defense, in between his Country forcing him to play and the NBA he was playing like 200 games a year. He held up pretty well given the circumstances. That man was FIRE
@Radames Rivera Yao was +6cm tall but -15 cm wing span, that make him at par with Victor standing with extended arms! But Victor’s jumping ability looks way better (lighter) and at only 18 he will grow even more! His jumping reach will be far superior, not even telling about his others fantastics skills. If he stays relatively injury free he will be a league on his own.
Yao Ming-criminally overrated. He may’ e looked good in the regular season but guys like Shaq ate him alive. Yao never ever had a chance at a championship
@STEVE BURSTALL Yao definitely made guards think twice before driving the lane. Also made shots a lot more difficult for the people he was guarding. I remember him dribbling full court with a quick behind the back dribble to lose a defender. Idk what you think you remember watching unless you just didn't watch him at all. A player like that completely changes a game plan.
After watching your video, I went to watch some of his highlights, and he's definitely an unique player. But I did notice a few things. Firstly is his ability on the offensive end, most of the highlights are pick and roll dunk and fast break dunk, but I haven't seen any one on one attack and the offence didn't seem to centre around him. Not sure if it's because of the highlights or him being a young player in his team. This reminds me of porzingis, who is becoming more of a 3pt spot up shooter rather than capable of getting a bucket with ease. Secondly is his recovery speed on defensive end, definitely is quick on his feed, but he might struggle when guarding a heavy player like Jorkic or Embiid. Baby Yao was also skinny so in order to be competitive in nba, Yao bulked up quite a bit, but that also increased his risk of injury.
He literally is 7'4 and pulling up from 3 like steph Curry and no duh al he does is pick and roll dunks on the fast break he's the Center that's his JOB.
To add to the concerns about his height and the usual career-ending injuries associatied with that, the kid is also very slim/frail looking. I honestly think he'll be lucky to last very long before injuries strike. Hope I am wrong though. Wish him all the best.
He'll be fine as long as he keeps shooting J's & 3's. Everybody knows it's contact that destroyed other giants careers. The problem with giants is they didn't seem to develop their bodies like Giannis or Lebron. Only Shaq seemed to do it. That's the difference between Yao, Porzingis etc.
I was just about to say "I hope he watches this, takes the constructive critiques to heart, and does his best to protect himself from injuries by developing good habits" but then I saw his comment on this video! Here's hoping you go on to become one of the GOATs, Victor! Make sure to watch a lot of Larry Bird and Michael Jordan videos -- they have the work ethic. And keep a good attitude like Magic Johnson. You'll get there, bro! I'm looking forward to watching your career!
Here in France he is already a buzz since years among hoopers. He has Rudy Gobert size and defensive skill (which is often ignored among French players), KD offensive skill and also comfortable in passing…God has no mercy, humains are clearly not equal lol
As a French fan everybody here is talking about how great his mental is and how determined he is to bulk up to defy these odds, that kid is special. Giannis Luka and now him what a blessing to be a European fan ahah
I totally agree with your analysis, however I would just say if there is one area that this kid seems legitimately different is how fluid and graceful he is for his hight. Ppl rag on on his skinny and lanky frame but that may be the thing that actually sets him apart on wether or not he is injury prone. KP is the closest thing we’ve come seeing something like Victor but this kid may just finally break the ceiling and transcend the NBA for big men. There’s got to be one at least that finally does.
There is no doubt about what Vic can achieve, I love basketball, and I hope and pray he can make it better for as long as possible. Stay healthy, stay strong and focus on your personal development. That's all I ask for, please🙏🙏🙏!!!.
Kareem Abdul Jabbar…. Your right about the height threshold. Kareem exceeded that by 2 inch at 7ft 2inches. It’s the reason he played as he did. And the hook shot allowed him to play a more fluid game.
People forget that one of Lebron's greatest skills is his availability. It is shocking how healthy he has been over his career, like a machine that almost never breaks down
@Philosoraptor He's a little more reliable than that, but Jordan had NINE 82-game seasons, including his final one. LeBron has one, plus one 81 and one 80 (Jordan's got one each of those as well)
@Daniel Levitt channel "MOST years above 79"? He's had one season each of 82, 81 and 80 games played and three seasons of 79. Jordan had 9, 82-game seasons - including his final season at 39 - plus one each of 81 and 80..
Thanks for your insight. Victor answered you better than I could. The fact that you (not personally obviously) manage to put commercials in places we could not ever have thought of wonders me. Well done, keep on the good work.
First thing i thought before i even watched the video was the minute he goes hard in the NBA his body is gonna either go hard and keep up or just breakdown at a critical rate. here's hoping he does well and goes without injuries that impact his career to much.
Foot injuries are a real concern for any big man, but he hasn't really shown that so far. As far as his frame, I'm not as worried as some. He has broad shoulders, and he's bigger than Chet already. He has the frame to put on far more weight once he gets to the NBA, but that could also increase the chance of a foot injury.
Jimmy will be a valuable scout to any NBA team that hires him . I get that players are humans with different strengths and weaknesses, but at the end of the day.... numbers never lie. Love your content man. We all appreciate it more than you know.
I've watched this video 3 times now, and I think there's bias towards recency. The league has very few 7 footers now, and yes, players at 7'3 and above are very prone to injury, but just before that threeshold you have players in the past like Mutombo (7'2), Wilt Chamberlain (7'1) and Kareem (7'2) one HoF and two top 10 all time. The amount of players at those heights is so low, that a few cases can really tip the scale without making it a certainty. We should consider other variables like body types, weight, training regiment, etc. Or maybe the shoes on/off thing at measuring throws my entire argument out the window. I'm fairly new to watching basketball this closely.
Going through all the stuff about nba prospects, I still find it astounding and in many way, baffling how Luka somehow was never really placed as anywhere close to the hyped up prospect that many other players ended up playing. He literally had everything achieved before coming to the nba. MVP in a grown man's league as a teenager. Won the championship at the highest level outside of the nba.. Played against NBA players, held up well and team actually won. And somehow ended up being so underhyped that he went THIRD to two underperforming bigs.
I feel like every year scouts suddenly have something new to say that makes this player just that much more amazing than past years even tho the same players have pretty much ran the league for the past five years
I’m glad Sabonis gets so many mentions even though he came into the league practically a veteran with major injury issues already limiting him down. He was the true monster of nature in his time.
Sabonis before his injuries was by far the best player outside the NBA.. amazing talent with a tremendous basketball IQ.. now imagine him having gone to the US at 19 (like Giannis) and having the right training... just imagine him also learning the skyhook from Kareem... he did not have the footwork of Hakeem but he would dominate with his own finesse, height and IQ
If he played his whole career in the US, he would be a top 10 player of all time. When you watch those old Soviet highlights, I’ve never seen a big man pass like that.
Speaking of Danny Ainge he’s making some crazy moves at the Jazz to increase their chances to pick Victor up next year 9 first round picks 3 trade swaps so far. Won’t be surprised if he goes after bronny James the following year either to get Lebron and everyone else that usually floats to him. It helps having D Wade being a part owner of the jazz team as well… could be insane if that all happens
Good video when you spoke about the phenomenon. A lot of the video was about 7”2 and over being to tall. I think we all totally understand that. Same thing apples to football. You can lose mobility and speed when you get to Tall. Just seemed like way to much of the video was stats on super tall players not making it. I’m hoping this guy can beat that stereotype but time will tell.
One of the major contributing factors to Yao Mings injuries is the fact that he rarely had any time to recover. He practically had no offseason to rest having to play for the national team during the summer.
@eRc @connortimoti He was a Pacer for 5 years, that's where the confusion comes from. His son is developing into an all star talent and my goodness the Kings are loaded with young talent
@connortimoti Domantas is not just a pretty decent player. He might be the most underrated player in the NBA, and he was my second favorite Pacer ever, next to Reggie Miller. I love that we have Haliburton, but man, I miss Sabonis…
Manage his minutes well and draw up plays that set him up to score with midrange & outside shooting. Avoid throwing him into the paint “excessively” as that is where most of the physical contact will be that can potentially injure him. Then make sure to provide for him a personal trainer that specializes in injury prevention and rehabilitation. That’s what I would do anyways….
This young man has Spurs written all over him. With that young core and such a versatile player as Victor...that's tons of championships in the future!!!
1. Relevant information 2. Music and video ratio 3. Detailed editing 4. Fluent and easy to understand video structure. These 4 things are what make this channel #1 in the basketball category
Plus: - rare hardcore statistics and analysis - artistic narrative and storytelling The man should make sports documentaries for Netflix. He has the hole cinematographic package
that's what I'm saying! Robert Wadlow at 8 feet 11 inches could have stood outside the key, not played a lick of defense or moved, they could have lobbed him the ball and he coulda just dropped it in shooting 100 percent for the game from there. his team would have been unbeatable even in the era of teams that can shoot 30+ percent from three. it's then that you realize, basketball is really stupid and flawed ruleset
i respect the point being made here, but I will say the graphic at the end with the percentages is a little bit misleading. Yes the percentage of games missed by the players 7’0-7’1 is high, but it is due to the low amount of those players. Much less players in that class results in less overall games being played in that height range. So 1 game missed in this height range may result in a percentage point or more, but in the shorter sized players, there are more of them so again 1 game missed will result in a smaller percentage of games missed.
Back when Wilt came along, they talked about raising the basket and lenghtening the court. They should do both now. Of course, NBA players can't even stand to respect the National Anthem, so pro basketball no longer deserves a big audience.
Even though this video is about Victor, every time you mentioned Arvydas Sabonis a smile lit up on my face (I’m Lithuanian). Thanks for the praise you gave him!
Me too as a Blazers fan, the most disappointing thing is that he was not able to join the Blazers early on at his best, there is possibly a couple of championships they would have won if Arvydas joined the Blazers early on, it took 8 years after the Blazers drafted him before he played a game for the Blazers, with Arvydas on the 1992 Blazers team that played the Bulls in the finals I think the Blazers certainly could have won that one.
If Arvydas was 19 and entering the draft this year he would be easily the No. 1 pick as well. It would bee the Sabonis draft. He was that skilled for a man his size
Sabonis was insanely talented! If only he went to the NBA when he got drafted. He literally played his best physical years in the UDSSR, not the US. I love watching his highlights. His basketball style and IQ are so similar to Jokic imo. Love to Lithuania from Austria! We "only" got Poetl (Spurs) but your (also very small) country produces TOP Basketball players on a daily basis it seems. :D
In the case of Yao Ming, it was more the overworking of his body by China than his body just breaking down. Didn't get nearly the time off he should have and his feet paid the price. Was one of my absolute favorite players back then.
ngl i think he is going to be great for a couple seasons but i dont give him long before he is on the bench or just done because of the injuries its hard to make that work with tat size i wish him the best but i dont see it maybe because he is so damn tall that he is blocking the view idk
@timedGuano true. Though I wonder why durant was often also injured. The Greek Freak is 7.0 and has put tons of muscles. I guess these 3 inches make the difference
The problem is that every extra pound puts more stress on his knees and ankles. Muscles can take strain off of joints, but at that height and weight he can't really afford to put as much upper body weight on as people are recommending. He should model himself on Durant if he wants to last.
I hope he pans out. Something bout his build though troubles me, eve never seen a tall lanky guy like him not become injury prone in the mba. Praying that doesn’t happen to him and he’s able to become the beast he’s projected to be
There's an argument to be made that as medicine continues to improve, we would be able to reduce the injuries or at least better treat the injuries of players so these giants can survive in the game and have longer careers.
Mark Eaton is so underrated. This dude was blocking 4-5 shots per game every year which is insane. He holds the record for most blocks per game in a season and most total blocks in a season. He also has the record I believe for most career blocks per game. He also was a great rebounder, he could score a little and was a solid passer. Eaton is one of the top 10 best defensive big men of all time. Think he won 2 DPOY'S but he should've won more. He's a very underrated player. If Utah would've had him just a little bit longer and if he would've been with them during his prime when they faced the Bulls in the finals then there's a good chance that Utah probably beats them at least 1 of those times. An older MJ wouldn't have been able to drive to the hoop as much, would've gotten less free throws and would've had to settled only for mid range 2s, long 2s and 3s. Eaton was one of the best rim protectors ever. He was huge at 7'4 and had such long arms. He was pretty athletic as well.
I’m glad Sabonis gets so many mentions even though he came into the league practically a veteran with major injury issues already limiting him down. He was the true monster of nature in his time.
Few years ago both Mark Eaton of the Utah jazz and Shawn Brady who played at byu in utah both retired to utah both wrecked on their road bikes within a short period of each other Mark died Shawn is crippled now. So sad and a crazy coincidence. Both top 5 tallest nba players ever. Do a story on this!
Can we take a minute to appreciate how awesome Shaq was, as a youth. Shaq vs the Great Wall was always a great matchup. Same with Tim Duncan, best PF ever! This coming from a Laker fan.
@adrian rodriguez I mean you have a point Duncan was a better passer, rim protector and defender. They blocked about the same amount of shots but defensively Duncan is way above Shaq. Duncan is arguably the 3rd best defensive big man of all time behind only Hakeem and maybe Bi Russell. But I personally feel Russell is overrated by a lot of people because of the era he played in. The guy was an all world defender though and was the Ben Wallace/Rudy Gobert of his era. To me Shaq's prime pretty much was from his 1st year with Orlando all the way until his 2nd year with Miami, after that he declined drastically and never averaged 20 points again. Thats 14 really good seasons, to me that whole period was "prime" Shaq. Now what do I consider "peak" Shaq? Shaq's absolute peak was from 2000-2002 where he won 3 straight championships, 3 Finals MVP's, a regular season MVP, averages 28.6 points, 12.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.6 blocks on an insane .575% shooting percentage and an insane 30.2 PER, then in the playoffs during this stretch he averaged 29.9 points, 14.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.4 blocks, .552% shooting with a 29.3 PER. Then in the Finals over a 3 year period Shaq averaged like 35 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists and 2.5 blocks on like 60% shooting. Duncan had never had numbers like that in the Finals ever, let alone done it 3 years in a row. So Shaq's absolute peak is no question much better then Duncan's absolute peak. Not only does Duncan's 14 year prime not compare to Shaq's statistically but peak wise Duncan's best 3 year stretch of his career also doesn't compare to Shaq's best 3 year Peak. If you look at the advanced stats, their shooting percentages, their averages, Shaq is just a way better player statistically. He did way more offensively. Shaq had 11 seasons where he averaged 26-29 points, Duncan had 0. Shaq had 14 seasons where he averaged over 20 points, Duncan had 9. I would put it like this, from age 20-33 Shaq was a better player then Duncan, and from age 34-38 Duncan was a better player then Shaq. Duncan had a little bit more longevity and still had 5 really solid seasons past age 33 while Shaq had maybe 2 solid seasons past age 33. So Duncan had a little bit more longevity but not as much as people think. And then as far as their primes/peak there's no doubt that Shaq was better during both their primes and their absolute peak years. The stats show that. You can argue that Shaq had more help and more talent then Duncan, but Shaq still carried the Lakers offensively. It's true that Duncan never had a player like Kobe who was averaging 25-30 points a game like Shaq has. Penny, Kobe and Wade definitely is a better supporting cast then Parker, Ginobili and Kawhi, but not by a ton. It's in the same ball park since Parker, Ginobili and Kawhi we're all all stars/hall of famers and if Popovich had played them more minutes and utilized them more then Parker and Manu would've been averaging 22-24 points every season. He under utilized them in an attempt to extend their careers but testing them so that the team/core could win more championships. Which worked perfectly with Duncan, Parker & Manu but it did come at the expense of their individual stats/accolades/career accomplishments. So you can argue that Duncan's numbers would be better by a decent amount if he had been playing 34-37 minutes a game every season, he would've had more seasons where he averaged 24-27 points. Duncan's statistics do suffer a little bit because of the minutes restriction that Popovich imposed on him early in his career. But if we take that away then Duncan's longevity probably would've been less and he probably doesn't remain an All star caliber big man from age 33-38 like he did. If we look at Duncan's per 36 minutes stats though and compare them to Shaq's Per 36 minute stats Shaq is still the better player statistically. As I said Duncan was only the best player on 3/5 of his championship teams. Parker and Kawhi won 2/5 of the Spurs Finals MVP's and they were the Spurs leading scorers and best all around players during those seasons as Duncan was getting older and starting to do a lot less offensively. Duncan played more of a Bill Russell role for the Spurs from age 34-39 where he was mostly just the teams defensive anchor and only averaged 13, 15, 17 and 8 points per game during those years. He was still a top 5 center in the league though during those years. People say Duncan was the much better defender, and he was, but not by as much as people think. Prime Shaq with Orlando and the Lakers was actually a much better defender/rim protector then people give him credit for. Shaq actually blocked more shots per game then Duncan blocking 2.3 shots a game to Duncan's 2.2, and Shaq finished with 2,700 blocks to Duncan's 3,000. So it's not like there's a huge gap there. Shaq in his last season with the Lakers and with Miami, Phoenix, Boston & Cleveland was terrible defensively, but when he was a lighter weight, younger & faster he was a monster defensively with Orlando. They actually had some of the best defensive ratings in the league as a team when Shaq was there. So while Duncan was the better defender he wasn't by that much. Far as passing goes Duncan averaged 3.0 assists for his career and Shaq averaged 2.5, during their primes they both were averaging 3 assists per game. So Duncan was a better passer but not by very much. So then that leaves offense which Shaq was a far better scorer and far more dominant player offensively then Duncan was. So that's really what seperates them for me. Shaq was also a better rebounder then Duncan, by just a hair. Shaq averaged 10.9 rebounds for his career and Duncan 10.8, however Shaq had 3 seasons where he averaged 13 rebounds and also had a year where he averaged almost 14 rebounds a game averaging 13.9, Duncan never had a season where he averages 13 rebounds. For their careers Shaq averaged more points, more rebounds, more blocks and had a much higher shooting percentage shooting an insane 58% to Duncan's 50%. Shaq led the league in Field goal percentage an NBA record 10 times, meanwhile Duncan never did it once. So this means not only was Shaq a much better scorer who scored a lot more but he was also a much more efficient scorer and a much more dominant scorer. And if not for his poor free throw shooting then Shaq would've had many seasons where he averaged 32-33 points and his career scoring average would've been in the 27-28 range putting him up there in the top 5. But Shaq also got to the free throw line way more than Duncan. Saying Duncan is better then Shaq is kinda like saying Karl Malone is better than Wilt. Or that LeBron is better than Jordan. Peak Shaq was the best version statistically of any player we've ever seen besides MJ or Wilt. Shaq would've averaged 60-70 points in multiple seasons if he played in Wilt's era. Duncan was at his best from age 21-31 averaging 21.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.4 blocks on .508 % shooting with a 25.1 PER over those 11 seasons. Meanwhile Shaq was also at his best between age 20-30 where he averaged 27.6 points, 12.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.6 blocks on .577% shooting with a 28.4 PER over 11 seasons. Shaq beats Duncan in 5/6 statistical categories except for assists which Duncan just barely beats him in by a hair. So Shaq clearly was the better player during their primes. During that span of their primes they each won 4 championships and 3 Finals MVP's. So it's super close. Duncan only wins in 1 category though & Shaq has a huge edge in points per game, shooting percentage and PER. Shaq had 8 seasons with a 28-30 PER, while Duncan never had a PER higher then 27. For like 60% of his career Duncan only averaged 13-19 points while Shaq averaged 26-29 points for 60% of his career. Duncan just wasn't a big time scorer, his career high was 25 points per game and he only ever averaged more then 23 points just 1 time. I do agree with you though that Shaq had better players then Duncan. But Duncan had great players too in David Robinson, Tony Parker, Manu & Kawhi who are all hall of famers, so it's not like Duncan had bums. Shaq also had some down years in LA where he didn't have any great players, this was when they hadn't drafted Kobe yet and then they had to wait like 3 years for Kobe to really blossom and develop into an all-star caliber player cause he came straight out of high school at 17-18 years old. Shaq had like 4 seasons where he didn't have any great players, his rookie year in Orlando they had no one and then he had to wait 3 years for Kobe to develop into a star player. Meanwhile Tim Duncan had a hall of famer in David Robinson to play with the second he entered the league. Duncan does beat Shaq in nearly all of the advanced stats though, except for PER which is kind of the biggest one. Duncan beats Shaq in Win Shares, Defensive Win Shares, Win Shares Per 48 Minutes, Box Plus/Minus, Value Over Replacement, Defensive Box Plus/Minus, Defensive Rating, Total Rebound Pct, Defensive Rebound Pct, so that's 9 categories. Then Shaq beats Duncan in PER, Offensive Win Shares, Offensive Box Plus/minus, Offensive Rebound pct, so that's 4 categories. Duncan beats Shaq in most of the defensive categories while Shaq beats Duncan in most of the offensive stat categories.
@Cam C i appreciate the detailed reply. But how about assists/blocks/ and defensive stats? What years were shaqs prime vs duncans prime years? You got shaq playing with a top 3 goat in his prime. I completely agree that shaq was the most dominant offensive player ever. But theres more to bball than thst.
@adrian rodriguez Duncan is more skilled all around and had more longevity but prime vs prime, peak vs peak? Shaq absolutely was the better, more dominant, more impactful, more unstoppable player then Duncan was. With them both at their best, Shaq was the better player and I'm taking him over Duncan. Most people rank Shaq ahead of Duncan on their all time lists. Duncan never even averaged more then 25 points in a season, which he only averaged once. Shaq averaged 26-29 points for 10 straight years. Shaq also averages a 29 PER over a 10 year stretch, the only other players in NBA history to do that are MJ and LeBron. That tells you all you need to know. Duncan never even had a PER higher then 27. Duncan also never dominated in the Finals the way that Shaq did. Shaq had the most dominant 3 year postseason run except for maybe MJ.
@adrian rodriguez Duncan was only the best player on his team for 3 of his 5 championships. Tony Parker was the best player in the Finals winning Finals MVP one year where he lead the team in scoring in both the playoffs and the regular season I believe. Then Kawhi was the best player for another one of their rings where he won Finals MVP. Then Duncan had the best 6th man of all time coming off the bench in Manu who is arguably a top 10 shooting guard all time. Then Duncan also has Kawhi later in his career. If you give Shaq, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard for his entire career then Shaq definitely wins more then 5 rings. I agree that Shaq relied on Kobe way more then people give credit for, Kobe was always the one who carried the team in the 4th quarter and was always the one taking and making the clutch shots/plays in the last seconds to save the Lakers. It was always Kobe with the ball in his hands with the game on the line, never Shaq. So you can argue that actually made Kobe the Lakers best player and their most valuable, because how can you be the best player on the team if it's always someone else carrying the team and taking the big shots when it matters most? You can say the same thing about Duncan though. In crunch time in the final seconds/minutes of the game it was pretty much always Manu Ginobili or Tony Parker who had the ball in their hands and who took the big shots to save the Spurs. Sometimes it was Kawhi towards the end of Duncan's career. Honestly the only truly clutch big man that always took the big clutch shots for his team in the final moments was Dirk. He is the most clutch big man of all time because he was guard like, you could go to him in the finals seconds of a game because he can score from anywhere, he can get his own shot from anywhere, he can dribble, he can drive, he can pull up, he can fade away, he can post up down low, at the elbow or at the free throw line, he's the hardest big man to stop at the end of a close game. Traditionally teams never go to their big man in the final seconds of a game because they cannot dribble, they cannot create their own shot, they cannot score from anywhere, they need to post up then they need someone to give them the ball in a special position down low in order for them to score. To me this is why Jordan, LeBron and Kobe are the best basketball players all time and it's what seperates them from guys like Kareem, Russell, Shaq, Duncan and Wilt. Those guys could only score in the post mostly. Duncan had a little face up mid range bank shot but that was about it. He didn't have much range or the ability to create off the dribble. To me this makes the great big men a bit more one dimensional then players like MJ, LeBron, Kobe, Magic, Bird and Curry who could score from anywhere. To me they are the most complete basketball players all time and the best "all around" players that have ever lived because they can do everything on a basketball court. Kareem, Shaq, Duncan, Russell and Wilt couldn't even dribble.
@adrian rodriguez Shaq had a 10 year stretch where he averaged a 29 PER. You know the only other players to do that? Their names are MJ and LeBron. Not even Wilt did it. He came up just short with a 28 PER over his best 10 year stretch. Shaq is the most physically dominant player we've ever seen. Duncan at his best vs Shaq at his best and it's not even close. The best version of Shaq was better then the best version of Duncan. If Shaq had played on a team with great players like Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Kawhi his whole career then Shaq would've won 7-9 rings. If he stayed with Kobe he would've finished with 6-7 rings at least. Even if Shaq had stayed with Penny and Penny had never gotten injured they would've won at least 4 rings together and then Shaq could've gone elsewhere to try and get a few more. Shaq had the best 3 year playoff stretch we have ever seen in NBA history besides MJ. Shaq literally put up MJ numbers in the playoffs and in the Finals. No player got fouled more or double and triple teamed more then Shaq. Duncan never even averaged more then 25 points in a season. Shaq averaged 26-29 points like 10 times. Shaq was slowed by injuries otherwise he would've had more longevity. To echo what Kobe said, if Shaq had just worked harder and if he had a better work ethic then he would've gone down as the best player ever. If I'm starting a franchise I'm absolutely taking Shaq over Duncan. With Shaq I know I have a better chance to win more titles in his first 10 years then what I'll win with Duncan. Yeah I'll have 15-18 really good/solid years of Duncan, but I'd still rather have 10 years of the most dominant player ever because in those 10 years with him I'll have a chance to win the championship every year. I can count on Shaq a lot more offensively then I can with Duncan. Shaq was the better offensive player and the better rebounder, as shot blockers they were about even, as defenders Duncan was definitely a much better defender, but vs prime Shaq he wasn't that much better defensively when Shaq was motivated and in ring winning mode. People underrated Shaq's defense with Orlando and during the championship years with the Lakers. He was Orlando and LA's anchor defensively and Kobe was their defensive pit bull on the perimeter and in the passing lanes. You can argue that Duncan was more skilled, had less injuries, had more longevity, took better care of his body, but when they were both at their very best Shaq was the better player. To me that matters more then longevity but some people value longevity more. Like to me I'm taking MJ and his 10 great Bulls seasons over having LeBron for his 20 great seasons. MJ did more in 10 years then LeBron has done in 20. At both of their peaks, MJ had the better peak and is still the better player and most the world agrees on that. The only big man I might take over Shaq is Kareem because he had both a very impressive peak/prime but also had insane longevity like Duncan did. Kareem's peak/prime was much more impressive then Duncan's but then Kareem also had even more longevity then Duncan did. Far as Wilt, he only won 2 rings in a league with only 9 teams and to me his inflated numbers are a large by product of his era. He'd still be great in any era but the reality is he isn't averaging 35-50 points in any other era besides the 50s and 60s. That era is the worst in NBA history. It's goofy and it's hot garbage.
I just hope and prays that he stays somewhat healthy because injuries can rob him and us as fans of a generational talent. I mean looking at what history has shown us ,guys that tall are plagued with leg injuries,like always. Look at Porzingas just riddled with injuries and his future was so bright. Like said hope pray he has a healthy career.
I don’t know. I remember LeBron being in High School. He looked like a grown man playing against children. Both Chet and Viktor don’t have those bodies. They still need size. Giannis needed size too so it’s not impossible but LeBron was something we never saw. It was unreal. You saw him in high school and immediately thought that’s not fair. Tall skinny kids dominating high school we see all of the time. Also, like you said big men always breakdown. Hopefully both are able to have long and healthy careers. They need size though because players like Steven Adams exist.
I hear a lot of people talking about how bulking up decreases injury risk, but is that necessarily true. When you're 7'3+ tall, doesn't having too much weight put a lot of strain on your body. Yao Ming's injury was stress fracture, which I imagine was partially caused by his weight of 310 pounds. Being super tall increases your injury risk, but not by as much as you might think. There are two reasons why. First, a lot of tall people have gigantism. People with gigantism are far more likely to be weak and get injured simply because they don't grow the same way as normal tall people and their musculoskeletal system cannot handle their height. Victor Wembanyama doesn't have gigantism, so his risk is already reduced. The second problem is that there are so few people that tall, so you often have to make a sacrifice. You don't have a large enough pool to choose people who are going to be as agile and injury-resistant as the shorter people in the NBA. I mean there aren't enough tall people in the world to find one as agile as the guards in the NBA, so of-course they are going to have a higher chance of getting injured. Injuries are highly inversely correlated with your control over your body. Skill in manoeuvring your body and understanding where your body parts are at all times will reduce your risk of injury, especially in the fast-paced athleticism-based game.
@Amit Sharma exactly. I was playing football and a teammate was blocked into the side of my knee. At the time I was a 600 lb squatter(pulled hamstring just thinking about it now 😆) so I was able to absorb the guy landing on my leg while still engaged with a lineman. Always look back and thank God that i saw him fall and I didn't shred my knee that day
If he builds mass and strength correctly it will indeed lower his injury risks. I like your thought process though. I will point out that Yao was overworked so it may have been that strain more than his weight itself. Definitely better strengthen his back because if he is as good as advertised guys will hang on him. Hate to see him end up like Dwight after the back injury
The most talented player at 7'2 and above is Kareem. Unless Victor says otherwise and surprises us, he is the player that most closely resembles Kareem but with the skillset of modern basketball.
I say that about Yao anytime I talk about him to someone. His talent and skills was actually unbelievable when you consider his height. It’s a tragedy he spent most of his career injury plagued
Would love to see him and Kai Sotto form the twin towers. 7"3 and 7"2 with similar games. Kai went up against Victor in Fiba play and held his grounds. Both are young, very tall, and passion for the game.
The guy was in my school (Charles Péguy, le Chesnay). At 13 he was already more than 2.10 meters and we were already talking about him being a prodigy and reaching the NBA I got to compare hands with the guy Damn he is tall Hope he’ll make it far
Good info on the data shared on the overly tall players. One thing ot keep in mind is the NBA has completely abandoned the post-game. So he doesn't need to put on as much strength as you'd think and that also means a better chance for longevity. He'll fill out strength-wise naturally even, since It must be complete hell for this dude to put on any weight the last 5 years while growing 1.5 feet more than other people. Hopefully he stays healthy, The league has enough guards that just chuck up 3's, the game is certinly more fun watching these anomalies.
@Graham Strouse oh I agree. There is certainly some strength needed. Being 19 and body all over the place can get rough quickly. I mean real body strength to bang in the post isn’t needed. That bang has been abandoned, so he can be a Manute Bol running around and teams won’t take advantage of it anyway.
It’s not about that. He has to keep his body INTACT. Long, skinny guys get hurt A LOT, especially if they start playing big minutes when they’re young.
It is my belief that the reason for Abdul Jabbar's longevity was his smooth gait and, of all things, his deadly sky hook. He smoothly and non-explosively scored, and,as mentioned in the movie Airplane, was laxed in getting back on defense. He was still fun to see. Being a short guy i tried to emulate Kareem's sky hook. I got good over the garage but on a real court in a real game i still got YOKED, as we used to call it.
The NBA is insanely competitive. Any number of great college players have come into the league and been just ordinary. Marvin Bagley has already played six season and he is only 23 years old. Most, more likely all, teams would put him on their roster if they had his rights. His career line is 25.1 minutes, 7.4 rebounds, 13.6 points. In my entire life, I have seen only a few sure things in the NBA draft - players you could be sure would be everything you imagined. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Larry BIrd. Magic Johnson. Michael Jordan. LeBron James. Others lived up to hopes and hype, but you couldn't be sure in advance. Or they weren't well known in some cases.
Thanks for the appreciation of my gameplay Jimmy. My main goal is to focus on the game and the hype around me isn't gonna affect the way I play.
GL
keep working hard man
@Lazlo Camp yes, you are! 🤡🤓
Looking forward to see you play for many years.. I pray the spirit of Kobe stays close with you on your journey..
COME TO KENTUCKY YOU WILL LOVE IT HERE. AND KENTUCKY WILL GIVE YOUR GAME THE EDGE IT NEEDS TO BE THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME. BEST WISHES BALLER! 5 STAR
Something to keep in mind is that sports medicine has evolved greatly the last couple of decades. Surguries that were once not available or were experimental, are now routine. I wish this young man a long and healthy career.
And it is precisely in the last two decades, as specified in the video, that we have seen a complete lack of 7’2+ players who can play without staggering amounts of injuries.
Sports medicine has not evolved in a way that prevents long thin players from getting hurt. And the recoveries for the injuries they’re more susceptible to are very long.
TL;DR, in the past few decades specifically, nothing has changed at all in regard to this topic. We can only wish the best for Wemby
10 years from now we could be looking at all of the all time greatest players in nba history if he stays healthy
@MrOlliguitar need some tissue? 🙄
@Kendall Hughes the only truth here is that you don't know what you're talking about and have 0 arguments. instead of stopping all you have left to say are insults. guess we've all been there at some point. when we were like 14yo.
@MrOlliguitar truth hurts, huh
@Kendall Hughes good thing you deleted that "1d10t" comment. that was so cringe. might as well delete all the other comments.
@Kendall Hughes yao ming didn't grow after the age of 18 either. neither did shaq. he was 7'1 at his high school grad at the age of 18 and he was 7'1 when he entered the NBA 20yo. i've seen many more people and NBA prospects grow up than you. now tell me again how victor somehow "likely" will keep growing and how what i am saying "is not true at all". as far as i know he has no medical condition that makes him keep growing. maybe you know more than we do since you are in PA school ;) whatever the case, even the tallest people usually stop growing around the age of 17-18 with few exceptions. that's just how it works. tall people don't grow over a longer period, they just grow faster. whatever the case, if victor keeps growing he most likely will have no NBA career. we can only hope that you are wrong.
imo its not even just about height. it's about strength:height ratio.
i'll say it now. that kids legs are not lasting if he does not put on at least 30 lbs of muscle and 10 lbs of healthy body fat to put some force into his step.
Dude has been playing pro ball with grown men for years. He’s also not a traditional big man. He’s really more of a big SF/SG.
That dude could weigh 400 lbs and look 170 on a normie LOL
true
Wait till he gets to the NBA. He'll start having all these ankle and leg injuries. Like Porzingis. I'm betting he misses massive amounts of games and then fizzles.
Obviously the frame is worrying. However, the last time a tall skinny guy from Europe with a unique last name and great work ethic came into the league, he put on a ton of muscle weight and became the best player in the nba
@MaliPrince they have special doctors and "medications"
@robtatts_ shoulders tell alot
Very much so
Very much s
Giannis is 6'11" not 7'4"
This video is extra extra relevant now with 7'0" Chet's unfortunate injury. Keep up the great content, man!
@Cam C Most european players play for themselves that is why Dirk the best european player only got 1 ring while u can search for how many Duncan and Shaq got. This guy is the spaghetti dinner Zion has been looking for, he loves destroying everyone
@Ekkaphet Seangwanthet 🤣👍🕷️🕸️💃🏼
@Cam C "webYOMAMA" 😂😂😂😂💀
@Iyad This is what turned Giannis into an MVP. A weight training program that put on pounds and muscle.
@Shika everyone saw all the potiental he has to gain weight which is possible and he is a hard worker
Good luck to the young fella....unfortunately, history is not on his side!
Off the top of my head, Wilt Chamberlain. Good longevity and led NBA in minutes played 9 times. Chamberlain was a natural athlete but also put a huge emphasis on physical conditioning which I can imagine is critical for big men to avoid injury.
@The left upright at soldier field they were measured without shoes so mostly 7’2 or 7’3 with shoes
He was “only” 7’1 though
That injury risk is just something every team has to gamble with. Thats why prospects like him are protected from a very young age. By the looks of it, he has a great team around him.
It's just amazing when the sporting world unearths gems like Victor Wembanyama 💯
you know who changed the NBA forever? Steph Curry…at a time when teams are looking for the next Jordan/Kobe or the next great big man as Shaq, Curry was silently driving defenses crazy and extending the range of shooting with accuracy…
The curry meatriding is crazy
yeah🤣 until he got destroyed by lebron james the 2nd times they fought and then force to get durant forming all stars players just to beat lebron.yeah🤣
He didn't change shite, he and lechina just f#ck it up.🙄
@Mumbere Kahindo Soon NBA teams won’t be looking for the next great 7 footer. They’ll just be looking for people that can shoot the 3 ball. Don’t need a rebounder down low if you don’t miss. 3 pt percentage will get people drafted higher than height.
Agreed..it also, unfortunately, made everyone shoots from 3 when only him and a couple others should always favour the 3 over the 2..Most are now taking bad shot because they think they need to shoot the 3 every time..even on fastbreak..As amazing as Curry is (and he is amazing), I sometimes think that it hurt the game, making it a 3pt contest where teams take turn trying to connect on a 3...
Love your videos, especially this one! Masterfully paced and produced. Your voice is honey, and insightful comments and research are amazing. Thank you! As for the percentages being SERIOUSLY stacked against Victor, that is simply undeniable. I've been a lifelong Blazers fan since 1979, and I've seen Sam Bowie 7'2" out of Kentucky (drafted along with Jordan) break his leg at the actual game in Portland's Memorial Coliseum. Then we had Greg Oden - another #1 pick - go down with repeated knee injuries. Both were generational talents in their own right had they stayed healthy, and therein is the cruel rub - they simply can't. In Victor's case, he's obviously bright and coordinated, but he will need to add another 50 pounds in muscle to be in the NBA...and his height and frame will suffer as a result. The writing is on the wall. Perhaps the X factor in all of this is that sports medicine and treatments for high-end professional athletes have never been better, and I hope Victor can rely on science and medicine to extend his basketball career. Regardless of talent or physical stats, he seems like a really good human being. I am rooting for you Victor!
Imagine if either the Thunder or Pistons grab that dude with their young cores. Not sure what you do with Chet after.
If you have victor and Chet on the same team you out victor at the 4 and Chet at the 5 since victor had a nice shot
Mark Eaton only missed 9 games in his first 10 years in the NBA- what a beast for his size. RIP big man.
In Yao's defense, in between his Country forcing him to play and the NBA he was playing like 200 games a year. He held up pretty well given the circumstances. That man was FIRE
@Radames Rivera Yao was +6cm tall but -15 cm wing span, that make him at par with Victor standing with extended arms! But Victor’s jumping ability looks way better (lighter) and at only 18 he will grow even more! His jumping reach will be far superior, not even telling about his others fantastics skills. If he stays relatively injury free he will be a league on his own.
Yao Ming-criminally overrated. He may’ e looked good in the regular season but guys like Shaq ate him alive. Yao never ever had a chance at a championship
200 games a year. Yes, he played 82-89 games a year in the NBA, and then went back to China where he played another 110+ games every summer. 🤣
@STEVE BURSTALL Yao definitely made guards think twice before driving the lane. Also made shots a lot more difficult for the people he was guarding. I remember him dribbling full court with a quick behind the back dribble to lose a defender. Idk what you think you remember watching unless you just didn't watch him at all. A player like that completely changes a game plan.
@Flipgurujn What is your point? We’re talking about 7 footers being 230lbs not SG and PGs.
After watching your video, I went to watch some of his highlights, and he's definitely an unique player. But I did notice a few things. Firstly is his ability on the offensive end, most of the highlights are pick and roll dunk and fast break dunk, but I haven't seen any one on one attack and the offence didn't seem to centre around him. Not sure if it's because of the highlights or him being a young player in his team. This reminds me of porzingis, who is becoming more of a 3pt spot up shooter rather than capable of getting a bucket with ease. Secondly is his recovery speed on defensive end, definitely is quick on his feed, but he might struggle when guarding a heavy player like Jorkic or Embiid.
Baby Yao was also skinny so in order to be competitive in nba, Yao bulked up quite a bit, but that also increased his risk of injury.
He literally is 7'4 and pulling up from 3 like steph Curry and no duh al he does is pick and roll dunks on the fast break he's the Center that's his JOB.
Bro honestly, after the game last night, I can’t believe how spot on you were, way before all the hype. Always ahead!
@Unexpected B he is not lying i am french and i knwo wembanyama since summer 2018
@Omar U yeah with 9 points per game smh....
In France the victor has been going on for about 3 years
I'm really glad I've seen this before people even knew about Victor. I hope he does great in the NBA in the future.
@Maxime Detournière yeah but I've only heard about him through Jxmy a few months ago.
Bro... this video came out 3 month ago, there has been talk about Wembanyama for about 2/3 years
I can never get down with a thumbnail showing KD under 7 with shoes on.
That’s what I was looking at Kd 4 inches shorter he 7 foot
To add to the concerns about his height and the usual career-ending injuries associatied with that, the kid is also very slim/frail looking. I honestly think he'll be lucky to last very long before injuries strike. Hope I am wrong though. Wish him all the best.
He'll be fine as long as he keeps shooting J's & 3's. Everybody knows it's contact that destroyed other giants careers. The problem with giants is they didn't seem to develop their bodies like Giannis or Lebron. Only Shaq seemed to do it. That's the difference between Yao, Porzingis etc.
Developing his body is one of the reasons Shaq was got his injuries, too much weight on his ankles and knees
I was just about to say "I hope he watches this, takes the constructive critiques to heart, and does his best to protect himself from injuries by developing good habits" but then I saw his comment on this video!
Here's hoping you go on to become one of the GOATs, Victor!
Make sure to watch a lot of Larry Bird and Michael Jordan videos -- they have the work ethic. And keep a good attitude like Magic Johnson. You'll get there, bro! I'm looking forward to watching your career!
Here in France he is already a buzz since years among hoopers. He has Rudy Gobert size and defensive skill (which is often ignored among French players), KD offensive skill and also comfortable in passing…God has no mercy, humains are clearly not equal lol
As a French fan everybody here is talking about how great his mental is and how determined he is to bulk up to defy these odds, that kid is special. Giannis Luka and now him what a blessing to be a European fan ahah
@WazTee7 Ginobili deserves the spot as well
@the GOAT -IsHere• True! Nowitzki is from Germany. Parker, Golbert, Rubio, Ginobili from West EU.
As a french fan are you not exciting by a Gobert, Embiid and Victo lineup for the next Olympics ? That would be crazy
@the GOAT -IsHere• don't forget the Gasol brothers! and if you consider Germany as part of Western Europe, Dirk too
@Ferchango for some reason people forget him
It looks like if you give him lots of space to dribble he does well. Lets see how he does when double covered. I'm rooting for him.
He reminds me of a mix of kd and kristaps
I would say more KD and Giannis
I totally agree with your analysis, however I would just say if there is one area that this kid seems legitimately different is how fluid and graceful he is for his hight.
Ppl rag on on his skinny and lanky frame but that may be the thing that actually sets him apart on wether or not he is injury prone. KP is the closest thing we’ve come seeing something like Victor but this kid may just finally break the ceiling and transcend the NBA for big men. There’s got to be one at least that finally does.
i love your intensity bro. you have that killer mentality that you need to become an all time great.
Good luck to the young big man. whoever gets him is taking a big risk but with a huge potential
Sabonis played at an elite level unfortunately it was mostly in Europe. He started playing here at age 31 but still put together 6 good seasons.
There is no doubt about what Vic can achieve, I love basketball, and I hope and pray he can make it better for as long as possible. Stay healthy, stay strong and focus on your personal development. That's all I ask for, please🙏🙏🙏!!!.
Thanks for the great video. The only thing that I am very worried about is his health when playing against much bigger guys.
Makes you appreciate Wilt all the more given how many minutes he played
Just hope he stay healthy and goes to a great development team
Kareem Abdul Jabbar….
Your right about the height threshold. Kareem exceeded that by 2 inch at 7ft 2inches.
It’s the reason he played as he did. And the hook shot allowed him to play a more fluid game.
Again, Jimmy only you make can stats really exciting - and you are always a head of the curve
People forget that one of Lebron's greatest skills is his availability. It is shocking how healthy he has been over his career, like a machine that almost never breaks down
LeBron James is a muscular freak of nature this is a bad comparison to someone who's built like a toothpick..
@Philosoraptor He's a little more reliable than that, but Jordan had NINE 82-game seasons, including his final one. LeBron has one, plus one 81 and one 80 (Jordan's got one each of those as well)
@DryChicken Except that when his battery goes bad, you can't just set him on fire for the insurance.
@Daniel Levitt channel "MOST years above 79"? He's had one season each of 82, 81 and 80 games played and three seasons of 79. Jordan had 9, 82-game seasons - including his final season at 39 - plus one each of 81 and 80..
@Project Hallway TV At no point did I make baboon noises!
Thanks for your insight.
Victor answered you better than I could.
The fact that you (not personally obviously) manage to put commercials in places we could not ever have thought of wonders me.
Well done, keep on the good work.
First thing i thought before i even watched the video was the minute he goes hard in the NBA his body is gonna either go hard and keep up or just breakdown at a critical rate. here's hoping he does well and goes without injuries that impact his career to much.
Foot injuries are a real concern for any big man, but he hasn't really shown that so far. As far as his frame, I'm not as worried as some. He has broad shoulders, and he's bigger than Chet already. He has the frame to put on far more weight once he gets to the NBA, but that could also increase the chance of a foot injury.
Hope he's not too fragile like we've seen in the past! Think some muscle would help but dude has unlimited potential!
Good luck Victor let’s just hope you remain injury free throughout your career.
why say stupid shit like this
That ain't gonna happen
Young Kevin garrnet 7 feet tall, could dribble shoot, still need big man under the basket, not enough 7 foot basketball playerz
@Lkix Kevin Durant
@The Original Aboriginal I agree, learn from the experience of the veterans
Jimmy will be a valuable scout to any NBA team that hires him . I get that players are humans with different strengths and weaknesses, but at the end of the day.... numbers never lie. Love your content man. We all appreciate it more than you know.
I've watched this video 3 times now, and I think there's bias towards recency. The league has very few 7 footers now, and yes, players at 7'3 and above are very prone to injury, but just before that threeshold you have players in the past like Mutombo (7'2), Wilt Chamberlain (7'1) and Kareem (7'2) one HoF and two top 10 all time. The amount of players at those heights is so low, that a few cases can really tip the scale without making it a certainty. We should consider other variables like body types, weight, training regiment, etc.
Or maybe the shoes on/off thing at measuring throws my entire argument out the window. I'm fairly new to watching basketball this closely.
I think it’s so cool that he regularly watches and comments on your videos. You truly are one of the greatest sports channels ever.
Going through all the stuff about nba prospects, I still find it astounding and in many way, baffling how Luka somehow was never really placed as anywhere close to the hyped up prospect that many other players ended up playing. He literally had everything achieved before coming to the nba. MVP in a grown man's league as a teenager. Won the championship at the highest level outside of the nba.. Played against NBA players, held up well and team actually won.
And somehow ended up being so underhyped that he went THIRD to two underperforming bigs.
Never seen a guy that big move that well. Ever...
I saw footage of him playing one on one against Gobert and he was a real problem, he's going to be great if he stays healthy.
I feel like every year scouts suddenly have something new to say that makes this player just that much more amazing than past years even tho the same players have pretty much ran the league for the past five years
Already looked noticeably bulkier in his US debut against the Ignite than he does in these highlights. Good sign of thing to come.
I’m glad Sabonis gets so many mentions even though he came into the league practically a veteran with major injury issues already limiting him down. He was the true monster of nature in his time.
@Blind-Side LocC 605 His "advisors" had guns and a gulag. . .
I think you are joking right...I think he was almost 35 when he went to the nba. I will look it up. My guess is 32
@Ali DWish they are talking about his Dad.
Sabonis before his injuries was by far the best player outside the NBA.. amazing talent with a tremendous basketball IQ.. now imagine him having gone to the US at 19 (like Giannis) and having the right training... just imagine him also learning the skyhook from Kareem... he did not have the footwork of Hakeem but he would dominate with his own finesse, height and IQ
If he played his whole career in the US, he would be a top 10 player of all time. When you watch those old Soviet highlights, I’ve never seen a big man pass like that.
Speaking of Danny Ainge he’s making some crazy moves at the Jazz to increase their chances to pick Victor up next year 9 first round picks 3 trade swaps so far. Won’t be surprised if he goes after bronny James the following year either to get Lebron and everyone else that usually floats to him. It helps having D Wade being a part owner of the jazz team as well… could be insane if that all happens
I was thinking this today
Danny is scary 😦
Good video when you spoke about the phenomenon. A lot of the video was about 7”2 and over being to tall. I think we all totally understand that. Same thing apples to football. You can lose mobility and speed when you get to
Tall. Just seemed like way to much of the video was stats on super tall players not making it.
I’m hoping this guy can beat that stereotype but time will tell.
Rooting for the young man 🔥
J'espère qu'il prendra grand soin de lui et qu'il aura une longue carrière.
One of the major contributing factors to Yao Mings injuries is the fact that he rarely had any time to recover. He practically had no offseason to rest having to play for the national team during the summer.
Sabonis son is a tough guy he has a shoot to like his game played off the ball and can play pg to.
For Yao ming and others it was respect to play for your country unlike other countries we just put together a team and just play.
@eRc @connortimoti He was a Pacer for 5 years, that's where the confusion comes from. His son is developing into an all star talent and my goodness the Kings are loaded with young talent
Yeah he played even played against the weakest teams in asia basically no break
@connortimoti Domantas is not just a pretty decent player. He might be the most underrated player in the NBA, and he was my second favorite Pacer ever, next to Reggie Miller. I love that we have Haliburton, but man, I miss Sabonis…
He is very agile and moves very well for his height, makes me hopeful that he will be able to avoid some injuries.
I agree but so is Kristaps P though.
I like the part where we hear Durant's virtualy difficult to block shots.
Makes me remember when DWade blocked Durant's hight arc shot.
Your videos are amazingly interesting and very profesionally made. Thank You!
Manage his minutes well and draw up plays that set him up to score with midrange & outside shooting. Avoid throwing him into the paint “excessively” as that is where most of the physical contact will be that can potentially injure him. Then make sure to provide for him a personal trainer that specializes in injury prevention and rehabilitation. That’s what I would do anyways….
This young man has Spurs written all over him. With that young core and such a versatile player as Victor...that's tons of championships in the future!!!
@Damien Moerman Because he wanted to play for Collet, trainer of the french team. TP, Collet, Pop : perfect for his development.
@Benenuts Yes. TP too, even if he was just a 28th choice.
j
Tim ass
No lol it was Tim Duncan I think it’s time people accept that fact lol the spurs literally should build Duncan an alter payed for by pop himself
1. Relevant information
2. Music and video ratio
3. Detailed editing
4. Fluent and easy to understand video structure.
These 4 things are what make this channel #1 in the basketball category
Plus:
- rare hardcore statistics and analysis
- artistic narrative and storytelling
The man should make sports documentaries for Netflix. He has the hole cinematographic package
Annoying ad 1 thing that breaks good basketball videos lol
that's what I'm saying! Robert Wadlow at 8 feet 11 inches could have stood outside the key, not played a lick of defense or moved, they could have lobbed him the ball and he coulda just dropped it in shooting 100 percent for the game from there. his team would have been unbeatable even in the era of teams that can shoot 30+ percent from three.
it's then that you realize, basketball is really stupid and flawed ruleset
i respect the point being made here, but I will say the graphic at the end with the percentages is a little bit misleading. Yes the percentage of games missed by the players 7’0-7’1 is high, but it is due to the low amount of those players. Much less players in that class results in less overall games being played in that height range. So 1 game missed in this height range may result in a percentage point or more, but in the shorter sized players, there are more of them so again 1 game missed will result in a smaller percentage of games missed.
Everyone understands sample size and he did acknowledge that point. It is the best comparison given the small sample size.
Back when Wilt came along, they talked about raising the basket and lenghtening the court. They should do both now. Of course, NBA players can't even stand to respect the National Anthem, so pro basketball no longer deserves a big audience.
Even though this video is about Victor, every time you mentioned Arvydas Sabonis a smile lit up on my face (I’m Lithuanian). Thanks for the praise you gave him!
Me too as a Blazers fan, the most disappointing thing is that he was not able to join the Blazers early on at his best, there is possibly a couple of championships they would have won if Arvydas joined the Blazers early on, it took 8 years after the Blazers drafted him before he played a game for the Blazers, with Arvydas on the 1992 Blazers team that played the Bulls in the finals I think the Blazers certainly could have won that one.
Sabonis was decades ahead of his time. One of the best 10 Centers of all time, imo.
You gotta like Arvydas!
If Arvydas was 19 and entering the draft this year he would be easily the No. 1 pick as well. It would bee the Sabonis draft. He was that skilled for a man his size
Sabonis was insanely talented! If only he went to the NBA when he got drafted. He literally played his best physical years in the UDSSR, not the US.
I love watching his highlights. His basketball style and IQ are so similar to Jokic imo.
Love to Lithuania from Austria! We "only" got Poetl (Spurs) but your (also very small) country produces TOP Basketball players on a daily basis it seems. :D
In the case of Yao Ming, it was more the overworking of his body by China than his body just breaking down. Didn't get nearly the time off he should have and his feet paid the price. Was one of my absolute favorite players back then.
Just imagine, IMAGINE, Gianni’s and Victor being on the same team 🤤
ngl i think he is going to be great for a couple seasons but i dont give him long before he is on the bench or just done because of the injuries its hard to make that work with tat size i wish him the best but i dont see it maybe because he is so damn tall that he is blocking the view idk
On the bench 🤡
Kareem! He was listed at 7'2" but he was actually seven foot three. The best 7'3" NBA player by far!
I hope this guy will have great success in the NBA...the Tanking game will start in 2 weeks
He will need to get together with Karl Malone's trainers and build himself up. He could benefit from developing his muscles more.
@timedGuano true. Though I wonder why durant was often also injured. The Greek Freak is 7.0 and has put tons of muscles. I guess these 3 inches make the difference
The problem is that every extra pound puts more stress on his knees and ankles. Muscles can take strain off of joints, but at that height and weight he can't really afford to put as much upper body weight on as people are recommending.
He should model himself on Durant if he wants to last.
Him. Lebron. Giannis. All could help him
I hope he pans out. Something bout his build though troubles me, eve never seen a tall lanky guy like him not become injury prone in the mba. Praying that doesn’t happen to him and he’s able to become the beast he’s projected to be
There's an argument to be made that as medicine continues to improve, we would be able to reduce the injuries or at least better treat the injuries of players so these giants can survive in the game and have longer careers.
1. Ming 2. Sabonis 3. Porzingis/Eaton
This is the order of 7’3” talent.
Don’t mess it up.
Sabonis is the most underrated big of all time.
@GB Savant It about what he’s going to accomplish.
You could be right though. I knew Mark Eaton personally.
Eaton is above porzingis. What’s he accomplished?
Fun fact, Yao Ming's last name is actually Yao not Ming.
Mark Eaton from the Utah Jazz. 7'4 and a hell of a player. Nothing but respect to him...
Mark Eaton is so underrated. This dude was blocking 4-5 shots per game every year which is insane. He holds the record for most blocks per game in a season and most total blocks in a season. He also has the record I believe for most career blocks per game. He also was a great rebounder, he could score a little and was a solid passer. Eaton is one of the top 10 best defensive big men of all time. Think he won 2 DPOY'S but he should've won more. He's a very underrated player. If Utah would've had him just a little bit longer and if he would've been with them during his prime when they faced the Bulls in the finals then there's a good chance that Utah probably beats them at least 1 of those times. An older MJ wouldn't have been able to drive to the hoop as much, would've gotten less free throws and would've had to settled only for mid range 2s, long 2s and 3s. Eaton was one of the best rim protectors ever. He was huge at 7'4 and had such long arms. He was pretty athletic as well.
I hope that he stays healthy. NBA seasons are very long.
I just want to say that this video is very well done. 👏
STAY HEALTHY KID 💪🏾
I’m glad Sabonis gets so many mentions even though he came into the league practically a veteran with major injury issues already limiting him down. He was the true monster of nature in his time.
For real us USA NBA fans missed out on seeing what Sabonis could done. He would have changed 80s and 90s nba legends would have been altered.
He’s the reason the Dream Team exists.
Chet injured for the whole season... You told us!
If only he grew up in a different era, rules don’t help big men no more. Big potential
Few years ago both Mark Eaton of the Utah jazz and Shawn Brady who played at byu in utah both retired to utah both wrecked on their road bikes within a short period of each other Mark died Shawn is crippled now. So sad and a crazy coincidence. Both top 5 tallest nba players ever. Do a story on this!
Who’s here after Chet Holmgren was officially ruled out for the entire season?
Can we take a minute to appreciate how awesome Shaq was, as a youth. Shaq vs the Great Wall was always a great matchup. Same with Tim Duncan, best PF ever! This coming from a Laker fan.
@adrian rodriguez I mean you have a point Duncan was a better passer, rim protector and defender. They blocked about the same amount of shots but defensively Duncan is way above Shaq. Duncan is arguably the 3rd best defensive big man of all time behind only Hakeem and maybe Bi Russell. But I personally feel Russell is overrated by a lot of people because of the era he played in. The guy was an all world defender though and was the Ben Wallace/Rudy Gobert of his era. To me Shaq's prime pretty much was from his 1st year with Orlando all the way until his 2nd year with Miami, after that he declined drastically and never averaged 20 points again. Thats 14 really good seasons, to me that whole period was "prime" Shaq. Now what do I consider "peak" Shaq? Shaq's absolute peak was from 2000-2002 where he won 3 straight championships, 3 Finals MVP's, a regular season MVP, averages 28.6 points, 12.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.6 blocks on an insane .575% shooting percentage and an insane 30.2 PER, then in the playoffs during this stretch he averaged 29.9 points, 14.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.4 blocks, .552% shooting with a 29.3 PER. Then in the Finals over a 3 year period Shaq averaged like 35 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists and 2.5 blocks on like 60% shooting. Duncan had never had numbers like that in the Finals ever, let alone done it 3 years in a row. So Shaq's absolute peak is no question much better then Duncan's absolute peak.
Not only does Duncan's 14 year prime not compare to Shaq's statistically but peak wise Duncan's best 3 year stretch of his career also doesn't compare to Shaq's best 3 year Peak. If you look at the advanced stats, their shooting percentages, their averages, Shaq is just a way better player statistically. He did way more offensively. Shaq had 11 seasons where he averaged 26-29 points, Duncan had 0. Shaq had 14 seasons where he averaged over 20 points, Duncan had 9. I would put it like this, from age 20-33 Shaq was a better player then Duncan, and from age 34-38 Duncan was a better player then Shaq. Duncan had a little bit more longevity and still had 5 really solid seasons past age 33 while Shaq had maybe 2 solid seasons past age 33. So Duncan had a little bit more longevity but not as much as people think. And then as far as their primes/peak there's no doubt that Shaq was better during both their primes and their absolute peak years. The stats show that. You can argue that Shaq had more help and more talent then Duncan, but Shaq still carried the Lakers offensively. It's true that Duncan never had a player like Kobe who was averaging 25-30 points a game like Shaq has. Penny, Kobe and Wade definitely is a better supporting cast then Parker, Ginobili and Kawhi, but not by a ton. It's in the same ball park since Parker, Ginobili and Kawhi we're all all stars/hall of famers and if Popovich had played them more minutes and utilized them more then Parker and Manu would've been averaging 22-24 points every season. He under utilized them in an attempt to extend their careers but testing them so that the team/core could win more championships. Which worked perfectly with Duncan, Parker & Manu but it did come at the expense of their individual stats/accolades/career accomplishments. So you can argue that Duncan's numbers would be better by a decent amount if he had been playing 34-37 minutes a game every season, he would've had more seasons where he averaged 24-27 points. Duncan's statistics do suffer a little bit because of the minutes restriction that Popovich imposed on him early in his career. But if we take that away then Duncan's longevity probably would've been less and he probably doesn't remain an All star caliber big man from age 33-38 like he did. If we look at Duncan's per 36 minutes stats though and compare them to Shaq's Per 36 minute stats Shaq is still the better player statistically. As I said Duncan was only the best player on 3/5 of his championship teams. Parker and Kawhi won 2/5 of the Spurs Finals MVP's and they were the Spurs leading scorers and best all around players during those seasons as Duncan was getting older and starting to do a lot less offensively. Duncan played more of a Bill Russell role for the Spurs from age 34-39 where he was mostly just the teams defensive anchor and only averaged 13, 15, 17 and 8 points per game during those years. He was still a top 5 center in the league though during those years.
People say Duncan was the much better defender, and he was, but not by as much as people think. Prime Shaq with Orlando and the Lakers was actually a much better defender/rim protector then people give him credit for. Shaq actually blocked more shots per game then Duncan blocking 2.3 shots a game to Duncan's 2.2, and Shaq finished with 2,700 blocks to Duncan's 3,000. So it's not like there's a huge gap there. Shaq in his last season with the Lakers and with Miami, Phoenix, Boston & Cleveland was terrible defensively, but when he was a lighter weight, younger & faster he was a monster defensively with Orlando. They actually had some of the best defensive ratings in the league as a team when Shaq was there. So while Duncan was the better defender he wasn't by that much. Far as passing goes Duncan averaged 3.0 assists for his career and Shaq averaged 2.5, during their primes they both were averaging 3 assists per game. So Duncan was a better passer but not by very much. So then that leaves offense which Shaq was a far better scorer and far more dominant player offensively then Duncan was. So that's really what seperates them for me. Shaq was also a better rebounder then Duncan, by just a hair. Shaq averaged 10.9 rebounds for his career and Duncan 10.8, however Shaq had 3 seasons where he averaged 13 rebounds and also had a year where he averaged almost 14 rebounds a game averaging 13.9, Duncan never had a season where he averages 13 rebounds. For their careers Shaq averaged more points, more rebounds, more blocks and had a much higher shooting percentage shooting an insane 58% to Duncan's 50%. Shaq led the league in Field goal percentage an NBA record 10 times, meanwhile Duncan never did it once. So this means not only was Shaq a much better scorer who scored a lot more but he was also a much more efficient scorer and a much more dominant scorer. And if not for his poor free throw shooting then Shaq would've had many seasons where he averaged 32-33 points and his career scoring average would've been in the 27-28 range putting him up there in the top 5. But Shaq also got to the free throw line way more than Duncan. Saying Duncan is better then Shaq is kinda like saying Karl Malone is better than Wilt. Or that LeBron is better than Jordan. Peak Shaq was the best version statistically of any player we've ever seen besides MJ or Wilt. Shaq would've averaged 60-70 points in multiple seasons if he played in Wilt's era. Duncan was at his best from age 21-31 averaging 21.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.4 blocks on .508 % shooting with a 25.1 PER over those 11 seasons. Meanwhile Shaq was also at his best between age 20-30 where he averaged 27.6 points, 12.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.6 blocks on .577% shooting with a 28.4 PER over 11 seasons. Shaq beats Duncan in 5/6 statistical categories except for assists which Duncan just barely beats him in by a hair. So Shaq clearly was the better player during their primes. During that span of their primes they each won 4 championships and 3 Finals MVP's. So it's super close. Duncan only wins in 1 category though & Shaq has a huge edge in points per game, shooting percentage and PER.
Shaq had 8 seasons with a 28-30 PER, while Duncan never had a PER higher then 27. For like 60% of his career Duncan only averaged 13-19 points while Shaq averaged 26-29 points for 60% of his career. Duncan just wasn't a big time scorer, his career high was 25 points per game and he only ever averaged more then 23 points just 1 time. I do agree with you though that Shaq had better players then Duncan. But Duncan had great players too in David Robinson, Tony Parker, Manu & Kawhi who are all hall of famers, so it's not like Duncan had bums. Shaq also had some down years in LA where he didn't have any great players, this was when they hadn't drafted Kobe yet and then they had to wait like 3 years for Kobe to really blossom and develop into an all-star caliber player cause he came straight out of high school at 17-18 years old. Shaq had like 4 seasons where he didn't have any great players, his rookie year in Orlando they had no one and then he had to wait 3 years for Kobe to develop into a star player. Meanwhile Tim Duncan had a hall of famer in David Robinson to play with the second he entered the league. Duncan does beat Shaq in nearly all of the advanced stats though, except for PER which is kind of the biggest one. Duncan beats Shaq in Win Shares, Defensive Win Shares, Win Shares Per 48 Minutes, Box Plus/Minus, Value Over Replacement, Defensive Box Plus/Minus, Defensive Rating, Total Rebound Pct, Defensive Rebound Pct, so that's 9 categories. Then Shaq beats Duncan in PER, Offensive Win Shares, Offensive Box Plus/minus, Offensive Rebound pct, so that's 4 categories. Duncan beats Shaq in most of the defensive categories while Shaq beats Duncan in most of the offensive stat categories.
@Cam C i appreciate the detailed reply. But how about assists/blocks/ and defensive stats? What years were shaqs prime vs duncans prime years? You got shaq playing with a top 3 goat in his prime. I completely agree that shaq was the most dominant offensive player ever. But theres more to bball than thst.
@adrian rodriguez Duncan is more skilled all around and had more longevity but prime vs prime, peak vs peak? Shaq absolutely was the better, more dominant, more impactful, more unstoppable player then Duncan was. With them both at their best, Shaq was the better player and I'm taking him over Duncan. Most people rank Shaq ahead of Duncan on their all time lists. Duncan never even averaged more then 25 points in a season, which he only averaged once. Shaq averaged 26-29 points for 10 straight years. Shaq also averages a 29 PER over a 10 year stretch, the only other players in NBA history to do that are MJ and LeBron. That tells you all you need to know. Duncan never even had a PER higher then 27. Duncan also never dominated in the Finals the way that Shaq did. Shaq had the most dominant 3 year postseason run except for maybe MJ.
@adrian rodriguez Duncan was only the best player on his team for 3 of his 5 championships. Tony Parker was the best player in the Finals winning Finals MVP one year where he lead the team in scoring in both the playoffs and the regular season I believe. Then Kawhi was the best player for another one of their rings where he won Finals MVP. Then Duncan had the best 6th man of all time coming off the bench in Manu who is arguably a top 10 shooting guard all time. Then Duncan also has Kawhi later in his career. If you give Shaq, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard for his entire career then Shaq definitely wins more then 5 rings. I agree that Shaq relied on Kobe way more then people give credit for, Kobe was always the one who carried the team in the 4th quarter and was always the one taking and making the clutch shots/plays in the last seconds to save the Lakers. It was always Kobe with the ball in his hands with the game on the line, never Shaq. So you can argue that actually made Kobe the Lakers best player and their most valuable, because how can you be the best player on the team if it's always someone else carrying the team and taking the big shots when it matters most? You can say the same thing about Duncan though. In crunch time in the final seconds/minutes of the game it was pretty much always Manu Ginobili or Tony Parker who had the ball in their hands and who took the big shots to save the Spurs. Sometimes it was Kawhi towards the end of Duncan's career. Honestly the only truly clutch big man that always took the big clutch shots for his team in the final moments was Dirk. He is the most clutch big man of all time because he was guard like, you could go to him in the finals seconds of a game because he can score from anywhere, he can get his own shot from anywhere, he can dribble, he can drive, he can pull up, he can fade away, he can post up down low, at the elbow or at the free throw line, he's the hardest big man to stop at the end of a close game. Traditionally teams never go to their big man in the final seconds of a game because they cannot dribble, they cannot create their own shot, they cannot score from anywhere, they need to post up then they need someone to give them the ball in a special position down low in order for them to score. To me this is why Jordan, LeBron and Kobe are the best basketball players all time and it's what seperates them from guys like Kareem, Russell, Shaq, Duncan and Wilt. Those guys could only score in the post mostly. Duncan had a little face up mid range bank shot but that was about it. He didn't have much range or the ability to create off the dribble. To me this makes the great big men a bit more one dimensional then players like MJ, LeBron, Kobe, Magic, Bird and Curry who could score from anywhere. To me they are the most complete basketball players all time and the best "all around" players that have ever lived because they can do everything on a basketball court. Kareem, Shaq, Duncan, Russell and Wilt couldn't even dribble.
@adrian rodriguez Shaq had a 10 year stretch where he averaged a 29 PER. You know the only other players to do that? Their names are MJ and LeBron. Not even Wilt did it. He came up just short with a 28 PER over his best 10 year stretch. Shaq is the most physically dominant player we've ever seen. Duncan at his best vs Shaq at his best and it's not even close. The best version of Shaq was better then the best version of Duncan. If Shaq had played on a team with great players like Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Kawhi his whole career then Shaq would've won 7-9 rings. If he stayed with Kobe he would've finished with 6-7 rings at least. Even if Shaq had stayed with Penny and Penny had never gotten injured they would've won at least 4 rings together and then Shaq could've gone elsewhere to try and get a few more. Shaq had the best 3 year playoff stretch we have ever seen in NBA history besides MJ. Shaq literally put up MJ numbers in the playoffs and in the Finals. No player got fouled more or double and triple teamed more then Shaq. Duncan never even averaged more then 25 points in a season. Shaq averaged 26-29 points like 10 times. Shaq was slowed by injuries otherwise he would've had more longevity. To echo what Kobe said, if Shaq had just worked harder and if he had a better work ethic then he would've gone down as the best player ever. If I'm starting a franchise I'm absolutely taking Shaq over Duncan. With Shaq I know I have a better chance to win more titles in his first 10 years then what I'll win with Duncan. Yeah I'll have 15-18 really good/solid years of Duncan, but I'd still rather have 10 years of the most dominant player ever because in those 10 years with him I'll have a chance to win the championship every year. I can count on Shaq a lot more offensively then I can with Duncan. Shaq was the better offensive player and the better rebounder, as shot blockers they were about even, as defenders Duncan was definitely a much better defender, but vs prime Shaq he wasn't that much better defensively when Shaq was motivated and in ring winning mode. People underrated Shaq's defense with Orlando and during the championship years with the Lakers. He was Orlando and LA's anchor defensively and Kobe was their defensive pit bull on the perimeter and in the passing lanes. You can argue that Duncan was more skilled, had less injuries, had more longevity, took better care of his body, but when they were both at their very best Shaq was the better player. To me that matters more then longevity but some people value longevity more. Like to me I'm taking MJ and his 10 great Bulls seasons over having LeBron for his 20 great seasons. MJ did more in 10 years then LeBron has done in 20. At both of their peaks, MJ had the better peak and is still the better player and most the world agrees on that. The only big man I might take over Shaq is Kareem because he had both a very impressive peak/prime but also had insane longevity like Duncan did. Kareem's peak/prime was much more impressive then Duncan's but then Kareem also had even more longevity then Duncan did. Far as Wilt, he only won 2 rings in a league with only 9 teams and to me his inflated numbers are a large by product of his era. He'd still be great in any era but the reality is he isn't averaging 35-50 points in any other era besides the 50s and 60s. That era is the worst in NBA history. It's goofy and it's hot garbage.
All I gotta say is let him play! Let him have as much fun while he can, and make a lil money. 🙏🏾🏀👍🏾
I just hope and prays that he stays somewhat healthy because injuries can rob him and us as fans of a generational talent. I mean looking at what history has shown us ,guys that tall are plagued with leg injuries,like always. Look at Porzingas just riddled with injuries and his future was so bright. Like said hope pray he has a healthy career.
I’m praying for he stays healthy and strong🙏🙏🙏
I don’t know. I remember LeBron being in High School. He looked like a grown man playing against children. Both Chet and Viktor don’t have those bodies. They still need size. Giannis needed size too so it’s not impossible but LeBron was something we never saw. It was unreal. You saw him in high school and immediately thought that’s not fair. Tall skinny kids dominating high school we see all of the time. Also, like you said big men always breakdown. Hopefully both are able to have long and healthy careers. They need size though because players like Steven Adams exist.
I hear a lot of people talking about how bulking up decreases injury risk, but is that necessarily true. When you're 7'3+ tall, doesn't having too much weight put a lot of strain on your body. Yao Ming's injury was stress fracture, which I imagine was partially caused by his weight of 310 pounds. Being super tall increases your injury risk, but not by as much as you might think. There are two reasons why. First, a lot of tall people have gigantism. People with gigantism are far more likely to be weak and get injured simply because they don't grow the same way as normal tall people and their musculoskeletal system cannot handle their height. Victor Wembanyama doesn't have gigantism, so his risk is already reduced. The second problem is that there are so few people that tall, so you often have to make a sacrifice. You don't have a large enough pool to choose people who are going to be as agile and injury-resistant as the shorter people in the NBA. I mean there aren't enough tall people in the world to find one as agile as the guards in the NBA, so of-course they are going to have a higher chance of getting injured. Injuries are highly inversely correlated with your control over your body. Skill in manoeuvring your body and understanding where your body parts are at all times will reduce your risk of injury, especially in the fast-paced athleticism-based game.
@Logan does he want KD durability?
@Amit Sharma exactly. I was playing football and a teammate was blocked into the side of my knee. At the time I was a 600 lb squatter(pulled hamstring just thinking about it now 😆) so I was able to absorb the guy landing on my leg while still engaged with a lineman.
Always look back and thank God that i saw him fall and I didn't shred my knee that day
@Xof Metleh AD probably using machine weights 🤣
If he builds mass and strength correctly it will indeed lower his injury risks. I like your thought process though. I will point out that Yao was overworked so it may have been that strain more than his weight itself. Definitely better strengthen his back because if he is as good as advertised guys will hang on him. Hate to see him end up like Dwight after the back injury
@K B flexibility and muscle mass don’t have to be married, see NFL players
The most talented player at 7'2 and above is Kareem. Unless Victor says otherwise and surprises us, he is the player that most closely resembles Kareem but with the skillset of modern basketball.
We'll see how he does when he makes it there. I'll wait for reality to set in.
kids injury prone. he wont make it past 1st season
And chet who's also over 7ft and very skinny is gonna miss the season from surgery which could be worse
....someone was spot on
I say that about Yao anytime I talk about him to someone. His talent and skills was actually unbelievable when you consider his height. It’s a tragedy he spent most of his career injury plagued
I remember he used to shoot the technical free throws
Yao Ming - injuries
Thabeet - bust
Porzingis - injuries
Bol Bol - G League talent
Marjanovic - injuries
Tacko Fall - G League talent
Very true
Yeah exactly....being that tall and so skilled is soo rare he even go toe on toe with shaq
Would love to see him and Kai Sotto form the twin towers. 7"3 and 7"2 with similar games. Kai went up against Victor in Fiba play and held his grounds. Both are young, very tall, and passion for the game.
The guy was in my school (Charles Péguy, le Chesnay). At 13 he was already more than 2.10 meters and we were already talking about him being a prodigy and reaching the NBA
I got to compare hands with the guy
Damn he is tall
Hope he’ll make it far
Good info on the data shared on the overly tall players. One thing ot keep in mind is the NBA has completely abandoned the post-game. So he doesn't need to put on as much strength as you'd think and that also means a better chance for longevity. He'll fill out strength-wise naturally even, since It must be complete hell for this dude to put on any weight the last 5 years while growing 1.5 feet more than other people. Hopefully he stays healthy, The league has enough guards that just chuck up 3's, the game is certinly more fun watching these anomalies.
@Graham Strouse oh I agree. There is certainly some strength needed. Being 19 and body all over the place can get rough quickly. I mean real body strength to bang in the post isn’t needed. That bang has been abandoned, so he can be a Manute Bol running around and teams won’t take advantage of it anyway.
It’s not about that. He has to keep his body INTACT. Long, skinny guys get hurt A LOT, especially if they start playing big minutes when they’re young.
It is my belief that the reason for Abdul Jabbar's longevity was his smooth gait and, of all things, his deadly sky hook. He smoothly and non-explosively scored, and,as mentioned in the movie Airplane, was laxed in getting back on defense. He was still fun to see.
Being a short guy i tried to emulate Kareem's sky hook. I got good over the garage but on a real court in a real game i still got YOKED, as we used to call it.
The NBA is insanely competitive. Any number of great college players have come into the league and been just ordinary. Marvin Bagley has already played six season and he is only 23 years old. Most, more likely all, teams would put him on their roster if they had his rights. His career line is 25.1 minutes, 7.4 rebounds, 13.6 points.
In my entire life, I have seen only a few sure things in the NBA draft - players you could be sure would be everything you imagined. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Larry BIrd. Magic Johnson. Michael Jordan. LeBron James. Others lived up to hopes and hype, but you couldn't be sure in advance. Or they weren't well known in some cases.