The San Antonio Spurs once again won the NBA draft lottery. It is a monumental moment for the proud franchise as they undoubtedly will select French phenom Victor Wembanyama when June comes.
This will be the third time San Antonio could potentially draft a franchise-defining big man. They drafted David Robinson in 1989 as the first overall pick and also Tim Duncan back in 1997. The Spurs have missed the playoffs in the last few years but Wembanyama could hasten the team’s timeline back to contention.
Wembanyama held a mini party in his native France as he watched the lottery with his family. His immediate reaction after the Spurs were awarded the first pick was genuine and fans of San Antonio should be ecstatic as Wemby looked pumped up with the results.
Wembanyama potentially landed on a great spot with the Spurs which are still currently helmed by legendary coach and hall of famer Gregg Popovich. The Spurs coach definitely knows a thing or two on how to properly develop a talented big man such as Wembanyama. It also doesn’t hurt that coach Pop is familiar with French players as he also coached former Spurs legend Tony Parker and Boris Diaw, both hailing from France.
But not everybody is happy with San Antonio’s win tonight. Some rival executives anonymously said that the draft lottery might be rigged and there’s no way the Spurs are awarded yet again a franchise caliber player through the draft.
There was speculation in recent years that Gregg Popovich may retire due to his age and also with San Antonio’s struggles the past few season but he may stick longer because of the chance to coach a once in a lifetime player.
