Shoutout to Wemby

A couple of years ago, I was on the verge of quitting the NBA.  I've now been a fan for over 30 years and, besides the rigging, after awhile you get tired of the redundancy.

But what I've come to realize, via my affinity for Wemby, is that the NBA truly is a fan-driven league.  Who's more important, the players or the organization?  When it comes to filling seats, definitely the players.

I'd venture to say that you'd be hard-pressed to find a fan who can name even one or two NBA owners.  An owner would have to be akin to a reality TV star to be known to the general public.  And no, I'm not talking about those minority celebrity types like Jay-Z or A-Rod.  I mean the big dawgs, like Cuban or Dolan.

In fact, the reason I started watching the NBA to begin with, back in '91, was due to the rise of Micheal Jordan.  You know, you see dude everywhere, selling Gatorade and sneakers and shit, and after awhile wand to see what the hype is about.  Then, it's up to the player to deliver.  And deliver he did, time and time again.

Since then, there's been quite a few must-watch players - Lebron, Kyrie, Luka and so many others I can't mention here but most notably, imo, Shaq and Curry.  Also, let's not forget Vinsanity.  Hard to believe that there was a time when he was more popular, in (American) basketball circles, than even Iverson, Kobe or MJ himself(!).  Granted, that was during Jordan's stint with the Wizards.  But still, Carter is an interesting case study.  I can't think of any other NBA superstar who went from A+ lister to obscurity, you know, like ever.

So anyway, the point I wanted to get at is it being Wemby, more than anyone else, who made me not quit the NBA.  And you know, let's be honest - it isn't only about skill.  There's a lot of skilled players out there who never even made an All-Star Game.

Also, whereas novelty (such as being dumb tall, super athletic, etc.) really helps a player's popularity, with Wemby it isn't all about that either.  As I stated before (and later found out that Shaq said the same thing), Bol Bol was actually like a pre-Wemby.  He's likewise tall AF yet, unlike any 7-footer that came before him, had the agility and skillset of a 2guard.

And that us brings to the third and arguably most important factor ultimately attributing to superstardom, the thing that made MJ an icon while conversely leading to Vince disappearing from the spotlight, why Bol Bol never got the flowers he deserved.  And that, dear reader, is likability or, let's say within the context of professional sports, marketability.  Lebron, Kobe and I would even venture to say Steph, no superstar since MJ has a mug as likable as Wemby.  It looks almost like someone slapped a kid's head on a 7-foot body.

And let me repeat - likability matters.  Let's go back to the Big Diesel for instance, you know, who the powers-that-be helped win two of those first three championships.

There was a time when he was perhaps the most hostile player in the league, which totally isn't fair when you're also the biggest and strongest.  But still, fans loved him.  He was one of the NBA's very first reality TV stars, in a manner of speaking.  And you know, even though he may not have had the top-selling jersey or whatever and only won one MVP(!) in his career, people loving you definitely matters when, you know, it's time to rig games and shit like that.

So now you have Wemby, who's not only dominant but also has the most-marketable face of a superstar since Jordan.  Even if not this year, I think it's safe to say that, barring serious injury, t's only a matter of time before he wins a championship. 

And you know, it's not only about skill, dominance or rigging.  Fixing games isn't the only way superstars receive favor.  There's also the team itself become more popular, being able to finagle its way to a superior roster.

You see how the Spurs landed De'Aaron Fox, who appears to be just about the only player on the team who isn't adversely affected by the Knicks' defense.  And as I pointed out in the last post, San Antonio, win or lose at this point, has some work to do this offseason.  You see that last play of Game 4, when Anunoby was able to crash the boards despite there being three Spurs' players underneath the basket.  Dudes needs somebody to hold down the middle while Wemby is out on the perimeter, trying to block jumpshots(!) and shit like that.

CONCLUSION

Thank you, Victor, for re-piquing my interest in the NBA - not only your height + skill but also making it such that dudes have to respect the post again.  I was also tired of all of that threepoint shit.  But please, San Antonio, get son some backup downlow and, if you lose, don't try to blame it on Castle since, as a 2guard, you shouldn't really expect him to be like your second-best post player.

Yes, it is super exciting that the Knicks appear to be on the verge of winning a championship (and would be even moreso if they won at MSG).  But the biggest draw of this series, honestly, is Wembanyama.

2026 Elimination Ruminations: OKC Thunder

OKC THUNDER (11-4)

In the last post, I sorta implied - or maybe it sounded like I took for granted - that the Thunder would win, but I didn't mean it like that.  What I was saying is that, imo, they would have been a better matchup for the Knicks.  That is to say that if any team in the East has the perimeter defenders (not including KAT or Brunson) to counteract the Spurs, it's NYK.

And you know, I wasn't the only person sounding like OKC was going to win.  Even mainstream outlets were doing the same, to the point that I even heard one YouTuber claim there was some type of rigging conspiracy in their favor.  Well, he was obviously wrong.  "The Dragon" won't be released this year.

JUSTICE IS SERVED

I've been saying for a year now that if Haliburton hadn't tripped over a banana peel in Game 7 of the 2025 Finals, it was very much looking, from the onset, like the Pacers were going to upset the Thunder and furthermore blow them TF out.  In hindsight, OKC's braintrust should have taken that more seriously, i.e. made some type of significant upgrade.

Maybe they were thinking 'oh, Tyrese is hurt. We ain't got nothing to worry about this season'.  You know, they believed their own press type shit.  Indeed, the danger of everybody being on your d*ck is thinking you're better than you actually are.

That's taking nothing away from Jared McCain who for spurts looked like OKC's best player.  The way the Thunder acquired him reinforced just how exceptional their braintrust is.

Also, shoutout to Jalen Williams.  Now we see that yes, despite their depth or regular season dominance, his playability is integral to this team's overall success.  But he's obviously not a true Pippen in terms of durability.

It's also safe to predict that now, all of that SGA MVP shit will stop, not saying that he isn't deserving though.  Some people say that he's boring to watch, but I beg to differ.  Having this relatively-slow PG who you like already know what he's going to do but still can't stop is must-watch, imo.  He's the most-methodical high-scoring PG since John Stockton (though not necessarily comparing the two).  But by the end of the day, he was effectively neutralized by Wemby.  And you know, it ain't like Shai can go to the gym during the offseason and grow a foot taller or some shit.

This is only Wembanyama's third season, but I think it's safe to say he's the best defender I've ever seen.  Lebron, in his prime, could guard the 1 through 5, though you wouldn't want to put him (defensively) against the bigger Cs.  But big or small, Wemby can defend them all.

SHOUTOUT TO THE SPURS

The Spurs are the only team who have more or less been contenders for 30 years straight.  They won at least one championship in the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and now possibly 2020s.  That's three different roster iterations (though two were led by Duncan).  No other franchise, not even the Lakers, can make that claim.

Picking Wemby a couple of years back was a no-brainer.  So what they should really be applauded for was drafting Castle who, the way I remember it, wasn't particularly popular coming into the league.

I remember when dude won ROY, and pundits were like 'so what. The class is garbage, so who else you gonna choose?'.  I remember they were even talking like, once the Spurs acquired Fox (and later drafted Harper) that they should just trade dude away or some shit.  Man, were they wrong.  When he banged it on SGA - I think that was in Game 4 or 5 - that's when you knew that the MVP was indeed beatable.

Speaking of which, my favorite thing about this series was the physicality.  Dudes played like real men, like now, you could see the difference between the NBA and WNBA(?).  All types of bodies were flying, with Wemby's light ass getting thrown to the floor nightly.  Yet, no punches were thrown, although I think there was like one altercation.

That's the scariest thing about Victor, imo.  His height, coupled with his mobility, is intrinsically an unfair advantage in the game of basketball.  It's more of a natural advantage than Steph having twice the shooting genes of Dell.  You see all types of players now mimicking Curry to success.  But there's no way they can copy Wemby.

But the truly scariest thing, I meant to say, is his competitiveness.  Even with all of his talent and advantages, dude is out there playing dirty and shit, you know, throwing elbows and taking cheap shots, like he really wants to win.  But as he becomes the most-popular player in the NBA, i.e. someone finally surpassing LBJ, the refs need to keep an eye on that type of shit.  You don't want the face of the league earning the reputation of a bad boy, because then, everyone else will follow.

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

Despite all that shit I was talking earlier, I don't think OKC's roster need any changes at this point, not with the recent acquisition of McCain and the emergence of Caruso.  In fact, as far as this postseason for instance, it almost seems like they now have more rotation players than they can accommodate, even with the absence of Williams.

Rather, the main priority should be the health of Jalen.  But you know, as I always say with these young injuries, who knows if dude will ever fully recuperate?  The good news is that he already won a championship, as well as made an All-Star Game.  The bad news is that, oh shit, he hasn't even gotten past his rookie contract yet(!).

This iteration of the Thunder have to play it back at least one more season to see if they can get revenge.  But that said, it takes both Holmgren and Hartenstein to attempt to neutralize Wemby.  So if anything, they obviously need another big, one who can come off the bench and actually have an interior impact against the best in the league.