Victor Wembanyama gets his first chance of the season to make life miserable for Oklahoma City, and he can do it in more than one way on opening night.
Spurs-Thunder already comes with plenty of heat because it’s a rematch of an epic Western Conference Finals and another turn in what the source calls the best rivalry in the sport. But the matchup also gives Wembanyama a clean stage to send two messages right away: one to Chet Holmgren, and another to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Holmgren angle is the obvious one. After the playoff run, another big Wembanyama night could make that matchup even tougher on the Gonzaga product. Sam Vecenie recently touched on that dynamic during a Game Theory podcast episode, and he said Holmgren has generally played well for OKC while also acknowledging the effect Wembanyama had in the Western Conference Finals.
"It felt like he didn't necessarily have that same level of fight and competitive fire... it felt like Wemby got in his head a little bit, but that's one matchup, and there are 29 other teams." - Sam Vecenie
That last part matters, but so does the reality of the calendar. Holmgren doesn’t just see Wembanyama once and move on.
These teams meet three to four times a year in the regular season, and they could run into each other again in the playoffs. On top of that, Wembanyama is impossible to ignore because of who he is, and the attention around him never really lets Holmgren get a break.
The cleanest answer for Holmgren is simple: beat him, or at least put together a strong game against the unanimous Defensive Player of the Year. If Wembanyama comes out looking anything like he did in Dallas last year - 40 points and 15 rebounds while putting on a show after a summer of work - that would be a brutal way to start the season for the Thunder big man.
The other statement Wembanyama can make is even bigger. He has a chance to remind everyone, on a national stage, that he was the more impactful player in the postseason matchup with Oklahoma City.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander struggled to work through San Antonio’s defense, and Wembanyama’s presence in the paint was a major reason why. The source points out that if not for Alex Caruso catching fire like prime Ray Allen, OKC might not have been able to stay in some of those games. Shai’s preferred midrange game was blunted by Wembanyama’s length, and that kind of defensive disruption can reshape how voters look at the MVP race.
A huge opening night from the Spurs star would put him right at the front of that conversation again, while also underscoring how quickly his game has grown. Wembanyama had a strong third season, but the story is still unfolding. Oklahoma City is part of it, but on October 20, the spotlight belongs to the new face trying to write the next savage chapter.
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