A potential debut for NBA prospect Victor Wembanyama has become clearer ahead of the 2023 NBA Draft.
Wembanyama is widely expected to be the number one overall pick in this month’s draft, which takes place at the Barclays Center, home of the Brooklyn Nets, on June 22n The 19-year-old is currently starring in France with Metropolitans 92 but will be playing in the NBA next season.
The San Antonio Spurs are expected to select Wembanyama with the number one overall pick later this month. They were handed the number one selection in the NBA Draft lottery in May, with the Charlotte Hornets picking second and the Portland Trail Blazers in third.
Wembanyama is regarded as one of the brightest prospects to enter the NBA Draft for many years. And according to a report from ESPN, his debut could come sooner than many expected.
July 7 will see the traditional NBA Summer League get underway in Las Vegas. The event sees rookies given a chance to play for their new franchises to see what they are made of going into the new season, with all 30 teams taking part.
Before then, though, there are, by comparison, smaller leagues taking place in different cities across the country. One of them is in Sacramento a few days earlier on July 5, where the Spurs will be in action against the Los Angeles Lakers - the event will also play host to the Miami Heat vs Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors vs Charlotte Hornets.
As a result, it’s been claimed that Wembanyama could be in line to make his first appearance in a Spurs jersey in the Summer League trip in Sacramento. Should that happen, he would be the first number one pick not to debut in Vegas since Markelle Fultz for the Philadelphia 76ers in 2017, where he played in Utah before heading to Nevada.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver recently spoke about the prospect of Wembanyama making his debut for the Spurs in Sacramento rather than in Vegas. Silver said that getting the best players playing in all Summer League events is good for the game of basketball.
"All summer leagues are NBA summer leagues," Silver told The Associated Press. "I'm very supportive of the Sacramento summer league.
“I remember when [Kings owner Vivek Ranadive] first came to the league and said this was something he wanted to do. I said, 'As long as you have enough other teams who support it and players who want to play in it, it's a good thing.'"
Silver added: “What’s made the summer leagues so valuable are really the media rights more than the individuals who buy tickets there, because it’s a very affordable experience.
“So, the answer is, I want Victor to get playing court experience and I think the team — assuming it’s San Antonio — should make decisions completely independent of any commercial implications from where he debuts.”
