It’s an unusual brand of basketball torture, being pulled away into open space, out onto an island with a 7'3" teenager who is not only dribbling a ball back and forth between his legs, but also sizing you up as he goes.
Victor Wembanyama has lulled Limoges power forward Wilfried Yeguete out beyond the three-point line on the left wing and entrapped him in a moment. Rocking side to side, Wembanyama stutter-steps to his left. Then, on a half beat, he floats off his left foot, raises the ball over his head and flicks it with his right hand toward the rim, all in one motion.
There’s no name for this technique yet. Wembanyama has just unveiled it, an improbable, perfectly balanced, one-legged running jumper from deep range. It resembles something someone might invent in the final dregs of a game of H-O-R-S-E, but he’s spent the past several months privately honing this particular move—one that stuns both his defender and the sold-out crowd at the Palais de Sports Marcel-Cerdan.
Watch the full video here.
