Victor Wembanyama was the most hyped and anticipated prospect since LeBron James. And he not only delivered but added some rainbow sprinkles, cherries and whipped cream. This is just the beginning for Wembanyama, as he’s going to level up due to experience and maturity, but also because of the acquisition of Chris Paul.
Paul is 39 years old and has played 19 seasons in the Association, but he is still a maestro at conducting offenses. Since 2011, Chris Paul-led teams have been Top 10 in offensive efficiency 10 times, with nine of those in the top five!
The Spurs were 26th in offensive efficiency last season.
Wembanyama was the pick-and-roll roll man only 11% of the time last season. Teammate Zach Collins was the roll man 30.3% while Nikola Vucevic led the league at 38.1%. Last season, Chris Paul was the pick-and-roll ballhandler 41.5% of the time. Out of players that were in at least 50 games, that ranked 10th in the league.
I have a not-so-sneaky suspicion that there will be plenty of Paul/Wembanyama pick and rolls this season. And that’s going to be a nightmare for defenses because Paul is an assassin in the midrange, while Wembanyama can flush oops from the top of the backboard.
When the Spurs run other sets, Paul is patient and understands how and when to optimally deliver the ball to Wembanyama. Last season, Wembanyama shot 46% from the field and 32% from downtown. That efficiency is going to increase. We just don’t know by how much. Wembanyama averaged 21.4 points in his rookie season. Mid-20s seems very viable while high-20s isn’t out of the question, especially since Wembanyama will more than likely average more than 29.7 minutes per contest, as he did last season.
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