Wemby's Record-Breaking Season: Top 10 Plays from Victor Wembanyama

Victor Wembanyama's record-breaking season was filled with impressive plays, including a reverse alley-oop jam, a four-point play, and a poster dunk.

Wembanyama's Postgame Interview On a cold March night in Memphis, Tennessee, Victor Wembanyama was in a seat in the visitors locker room at FedExForum, where he took one foot out of an orange cooler filled with ice and water. Devin Vassell was dressing in the corner, leaving Wembanyama reluctant to start his postgame interview. Wembanyama told the small group of reporters near his locker that he'd start his availability once everybody stopped recording on their phones. He told Vassell, who was still dressing, 'I've got your back.' As Wembanyama took the first question, he noticed someone recording and grabbed his phone, turned on the flashlight, and pointed it at the group while looking away and imitating the reporter, saying 'No, I'm not recording.' The gag turned into one of Wembanyama's most entertaining plays off the court. ## Wembanyama's Favorite Plays Wembanyama's favorite plays typically start with him in a defensive stance. As Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said, 'My favorite Victor plays typically start with him in a defensive stance. And I say that because when you really watch the film, when he's in a stance, that typically means he's switched on mentally.' Wembanyama has produced plenty of stunning viral moments during the season, with more likely on deck starting Sunday when the San Antonio Spurs host their first playoff series since 2017 against the Portland Trail Blazers. ## Area 51 Reverse Alley-Oop Jam The first play on the list is a reverse alley-oop jam, which happened on October 22 at Dallas Mavericks. Wembanyama made this reverse alley-oop look too easy off the feed from Stephon Castle. Castle lit up when discussing the play, calling it 'a turning point in the game,' that 'we were definitely hyped about.' With 8:28 remaining in the second quarter of San Antonio's season-opening victory at Dallas, Castle ran the floor screaming, 'Rim, Vic! Rim! Rim! Rim!' Wembanyama immediately pushed off on a trailing Dwight Powell to gain one last burst of speed to the basket. ## Reverse and-1 Dunk This play happened on October 22 at Dallas, in the third quarter of the Mavericks game. Wembanyama spoiled the debut of Mavericks rookie and No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg with a 40-point, 15-rebound performance. With 2:47 left in the second quarter, Wembanyama caught a pass from rookie guard Dylan Harper. One quick pump fake lured P.J. Washington off his feet, giving Wembanyama room to drive baseline as Anthony Davis stepped over to help, but it was too late. The 22-year-old unleashed a ferocious reverse dunk on Davis, who was whistled for a foul. Wembanyama hit the subsequent free throw to give San Antonio a 50-48 lead. ## Four-Point Play Wembanyama made a four-point play on October 22 at Dallas, in the third quarter of the Mavericks game. Dribbling up the floor, Wembanyama wasn't about to miss an opportunity to beat Lively in a one-on-one matchup. He pulled off a crossover dribble to his left, stepped forward, then back, dribbled through his legs and then behind the back. Then, the 7-foot-4 star rose for a step-back 3-pointer with Lively tightly defending him. Officials whistled Lively for a foul after Wembanyama landed on his foot on the follow-through. On the floor, with his fists stacked, Wembanymana churned his hands in a circular motion to say that he was 'cooking'. ## 360 Layup Wembanyama surprised himself with a 360 layup on October 27 versus Toronto. Three games after his 40-point season opener, Wembanyama came off a Vassell screen, caught a pass from Barnes, and took only one dribble to squeeze between defenders Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl before launching into a 360-degree layup that he kissed off the glass for a bucket. Wembanyama poured in 24 points with 15 rebounds, and the Spurs matched their best start in franchise history (4-0) after their 121-103 triumph. ## Self Alley-Oop Wembanyama left the floor with another viral highlight on November 14 versus the Golden State Warriors. Two days after Stephen Curry scored 46 points to help the Warriors beat the Spurs despite triple-doubles from Wembanyama and Castle, Wembanyama took matters into his own hands. After dribbling past Draymond Green, Wembanyama made Moses Moody lunge with a pump fake, before tossing the ball off the glass for a two-handed dunk on a self alley-oop with 10:21 remaining in the third quarter. Wembanyama finished with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocks in 38 minutes as the Spurs lost their first contest of the NBA Cup. ## Poster Dunk Wembanyama was still in the gift-giving mood for the home fans at Frost Bank Center on December 27 versus the Utah Jazz. By this point in the season, opponents should have known not to fall for his pump fake outside the 3-point line. But this time, Lauri Markkanen took the bait, and his teammates paid the price. As Markkanen flew past on the pump fake, Wembanyama put the ball on the floor. Two dribbles later, with Cody Williams, Brice Sensabaugh, and Walter Clayton Jr. attempting to help inside, Wembanyama bent back the rim for the loudest dunk of the night, posterizing Kyle Filipowski, who was whistled for a foul with 8:49 remaining. ## Kung-Fu Wembanyama During pregame warmups before the Spurs' 106-105 loss to the Grizzlies, four basketballs were lodged in the net in need of clearance. Wembanyama showcased some of the other talents he accrued after spending his offseason at a Shaolin temple in Zhenzhou, China, meditating and participating in kung fu training. With one small leap, Wembanyama kicked one of the balls loose from the net. When he was told that there are other people capable of kicking as high as the rim, Wembanyama shot back, 'I can beat that. I'm confident.' ## Windmill Dunk When Barnes reminded Johnson of this play, he said, 'Oooh! I forgot about that one.' De'Aaron Fox drove to the middle of the floor and kicked it out to Barnes, who then swung the ball to Wembanyama at the 3-point arc. He took only one dribble, and the defenders in the lane immediately parted for him as he ripped a two-handed windmill dunk. Of course, Wembanyama is known for doing things his own way, so it's no surprise that his windmill flowed clockwise instead of the typical counterclockwise motion. ## No-look Block Tari Eason's mother, Teroya, has built quite a social media presence and pulls no punches, even with her son. In the second quarter of the Spurs' lopsided victory over Houston, the Rockets forward advanced the ball in transition as Wembanyama drifted back to guard center Alperen Sengun. With Champagnie guarding Eason, and Wembanyama still on Sengun, the Rockets' forward drove on Champagnie. What Eason likely didn't realize was that Wembanyama was baiting him at the rim to shoot it. Right after Eason slipped past Champagnie with an up-and-under move, Wembanyama stepped over at the last second and blocked the shot into the crowd. ## First Buzzer Beater With his team trailing 100-99, it took nerve for Wembanyama to dribble 9.7 seconds off the clock. But that's what he needed to do to survey the defense before stepping right, taking one dribble and hitting a go-ahead 17-foot fadeaway over Oso Ighodaro with 1.1 seconds left in the game. The bucket clinched San Antonio's first postseason berth since 2019 and was Wembanyama's first go-ahead make in the final five seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime in his career. Fox said, 'Once you get older, you aren't fazed by those moments. He isn't fazed by them right now. He just going to continue to grow, continue to be better, and continue to be comfortable in those situations.'