Victor Wembanyama raised eyebrows with his recent comments.
Following the San Antonio Spurs’ latest NBA Cup victory, the veteran center seemingly threw a subliminal shot at the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“I’m just glad to be a part of something that’s growing to be so beautiful—pure and ethical basketball, you know?”
On the surface, it seems harmless, but considering there’s been an outpour of criticism aimed at the Thunder and its star player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, for playing an “unethical” style of basketball over the last couple of years, many fans and analysts couldn’t help but feel like there were dots to connect here.
The former NBA Sixth Man of the Year, Lou Williams, encourages Wembanyama to connect the dots for everybody next time, if that was truly his aim.
Lou Williams Has Words for Wemby
“We’re gonna put an address on it,” Williams said of the quote.
“If he didn’t put an address on it, we’re not gonna, we’re not gonna try to say this and that, and let me remind you again, he’s still barking up. He’s barking up to the guys that have the rings. So whatever you want to fashion their style of basketball to be, it’s ring season over there, and they’re still the favorites.”
Coming off their championship-winning season, the Thunder haven’t missed a step. Heading into their NBA Cup semi-final game with the Spurs, OKC had just one loss.
Wembanyama and the Spurs issued the Thunder their second loss of the year, which resulted in OKC’s elimination from the NBA Cup tournament.
Despite the victory and the postgame comments, Wembanyama downplayed the idea that he was “barking up.”
“I think we’re not quite there yet,” Wembanyama told reporters this week. “It’s not like we are the second seed right now. They’re in their own tier, but in the future, if we reach that level, it would be great to have a rivalry.”
The NBA Should Embrace the Moment
“If this is what’s going on, I like the fact that he’s shaking the tree,” Williams added.
“Shake the tree as much as you can. However, put an address on it. Don’t send a subliminal to Chet [Holmgren]. Don’t send a subliminal to SGA. If we love these quotes and they’re valid and they’re authentic for those guys, put an address on it like anybody else.”
The Spurs and the Thunder will meet again two more times this month. The next matchup takes place on December 23. Then, the two teams will have the 2:30 PM ET slot on Christmas Day.
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