Victor Wembanyama’s playoff run this season has proven that he is one of the best players in the world, as the San Antonio Spurs enter the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks.
While he is still in the middle of the NBA Finals, Wembanyama is already the best of the best in the sport, at least according to NBA insider Tim Legler. According to him, Wembanyama will enter next season with the target on his back as the consensus best player in the world, no matter the result of the NBA Finals.
“I think Wemby now and the series he had against OKC and winning Game 7 on the road in the fashion that he did and that team did,” Legler said in The Draymond Green Show. “You feel like no matter what happens in this series, you know, he is setting the stage for next season.
“Where people and again, you got to come out of the gate, they got to play well, he’s got to put up his usual numbers, their teams got to get out to a great start, but you know how that works. By mid-season, we start to form a consensus on it. I think Wemby’s positioned himself to be that guy.”
“I think Wemby now and the series he had against OKC and winning game 7 on the road in the fashion that he did and that team did, you feel like no matter what happens in this series, you know, he is setting
Wembanyama has carried the cudgels for the Spurs throughout their current playoff run, with games such as his 41-point explosion in double overtime in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the OKC Thunder.
Wemby, who is only in his third year in the NBA, is already playing in his first-ever NBA Finals as the go-to guy with the Spurs.
In Game 1 against the Knicks, Wembanyama put up 26 points but missed numerous crucial baskets late in the fourth quarter. He also had 12 rebounds and shot 12 of 13 from the free-throw line.
Spurs Head Coach Explains How To Give Wemby Better Looks
GettySAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – JUNE 03: Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs reacts during the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks in Game One of the 2026 NBA Finals at Frost Bank Center on June 03, 2026 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson was not content with the looks Wembanyama got in Game 1. He hopes to give him better looks as the team vowed to bounce back in Game 2.
“Felt like he missed a few shots early,” he said. “We’ve got to get him moving in space and toward the rim, whether that’s on rolls or running in transition. But we need the pressure on the rim and the force in the paint. They did a good job obviously of being physical and showing crowds. We need to do a better job of establishing that early on, for sure.”
With the Spurs’ loss, the Knicks are now on a 12-game winning streak, dating back to the first round of the playoffs. They swept the second round and the conference finals against the Philadelphia 76ers and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Wemby Says He Is Not Worried About The Spurs
GettySAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – JUNE 03: Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs reacts during the second quarter against the New York Knicks in Game One of the 2026 NBA Finals at Frost Bank Center on June 03, 2026 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Wembanyama is the last guy to be worried about after the Spurs’ Game 1 loss against the Knicks in San Antonio. He has full trust in the team’s ability to bounce back from adversity.
“It’s almost not like I have anything to figure out. It’s almost like I have to play normal, not even good [in Game 2],” he said. “It’s just [about] doing the right things enough. When we play bad, when I play bad, is when we shoot ourselves in the foot. This is why I’m not worried. We’re going to be so much better. I’m going to be so much better.”
Game 2’s tip-off will be on Friday night in San Antonio before the series shifts to New York.
Wembanyama Declared As Best Player In The World Regardless of NBA Finals Result