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For most of Thursday’s 114-95 victory against the San Antonio Spurs, Chicago Bulls fans didn’t seem to know what to expect from rookie Victor Wembanyama.
A 7-foot-4 sensation from France, Wembanyama drove interest and excitement in the NBA long before the Spurs drafted him No. 1 this summer.
Thursday wasn’t a stellar showing from Wembanyama, who scored only seven points in 22 minutes in his first game back from a short-term ankle injury. But that did little to quell the buzz surrounding the 19-year-old rookie. And each time he did deliver an eye-popping moment — swatting a block that would be out of reach for any other player, throwing down a dunk in the paint — the United Center crowd rumbled in appreciation.
That has been a constant for Wembanyama since his first minutes of summer league in Las Vegas — a sense of almost unfair expectation every time he touches the ball.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich would like everyone to stop holding their breath. He hasn’t been able to escape the sensationalized chatter surrounding Wembanyama since the Spurs won the draft lottery in June. And in the time since, Popovich has heard plenty of chatter about how the rookie is expected to change the game.
“It’s ignorant,” Popovich said. “It’s silly hyperbole.”
Popovich praised Wembanyama extensively before the game — for his eagerness to be coached, his resiliency, his work ethic. But he also hopes the hype surrounding the rookie will die down as fans adjust to the novelty of his size.
“He’s a young, 19-year-old kid like anybody else who’s got a lot of talent, and it’s got to all be channeled in the right way,” Popovich said. “In between highlight clips, there’s going to be a whole lot of things that he needs to work out. I actually got a lot of smiles and laughs out of the way people would describe his skill. He just happens to be (7-foot-4). So when he shoots a step-back 3, everybody goes, ‘Whoa, I’ve never seen that before.’ Yeah, you have. He just happens to be (7-4), so it looks a little different.”
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Chicago fans are already accustomed to sharing space at the United Center with a generational No. 1 draft pick.
The last year for the Chicago Blackhawks has mirrored that of the Spurs — winning the draft lottery for a one-of-a-kind prospect, committing to the process of building a roster around a future star and meanwhile suffering in the short term. The arrival of Connor Bedard shifted the future of the Blackhawks the same way Wembanyama recalibrated plans for the Spurs.
Ahead of Thursday’s game, Bedard and Wembanyama met at the United Center.
Chicago Tribune Sports
In a video the NHL shared, Bedard and Wembanyama compared their experiences as teenage No. 1 picks who have been predicted to be game-changers in their respective leagues. Both were aware of one another before their drafts and understand the unique situation of carrying an entire sport’s expectations on their shoulders.
Bedard jokingly asked Wembanyama if he had ever watched a hockey game.
“A full game?” Wembanyama said. “No. But I love when people start fighting. It just looks out of this world.”
This wasn’t new for the Bulls either. They had their first look at Wembanyama on Dec. 8 in a consolation game of the NBA In-Season Tournament. The Bulls won that first meeting in San Antonio 121-112. But Wembanyama still found his spots, logging 21 points and 20 rebounds.
That wasn’t the case Thursday. The Bulls held Wembanyama scoreless in the first half. His seven-point total was the lowest of the season. Center Andre Drummond kept Wembanyama out of rhythm during an extended defensive rotation in the second half, while the Bulls offensively managed to navigate away from his extensive reach as a shot-blocker.
“Defensively he’s a handful,” coach Billy Donovan said. “Just because he’s so long and even when you get angles to the basket, you still have to try to finish over him. But I did think the physicality of Andre on both ends of the floor — one when he was trying to cut and move, the physicality when he tried to get a little bit closer to the basket, Andre holding him up and then I think even though at times Andre didn’t get the ball, him occupying him physically — those things helped us because clearly he was a factor at the basket.”
Coby White was the true standout, continuing an explosive run of scoring with 22 points — 18 in the second half — and adding five assists. DeMar DeRozan had 21 points and Patrick Williams 18 as the Bulls improved to 13-17 and extended their run without the injured Zach LaVine to 8-3.