Victor Wembanyama’s rise has been fast enough to make the rest of the league take notice, but he’s not pretending he got there alone. The Spurs star, who arrived in 2023 and has already become one of the best players in the NBA, says one of the biggest lessons he picked up came from Gregg Popovich.
Popovich was Wembanyama’s coach early on before moving into a more front office role in recent years, and his influence still lingers around San Antonio. The longtime Spurs leader built the franchise’s run of dominance from the 1990s into the late 2010s, pairing with Tim Duncan on the way to five championships. Even after Duncan and Tony Parker retired, Popovich stayed at the center of the organization until health issues arrived near the end of his coaching career.
Wembanyama said the veteran coach helped him adjust to the NBA, and he pointed to one line in particular from film sessions.
"He often said something when we were in film: after a win, you're rarely as good as you thought you were, and after a loss, you're rarely as bad as you thought you were," Wembanyama said on 60 Minutes about Popovich's impact on him.
That message has stuck with him, and it’s part of why Popovich’s presence still matters in San Antonio. As long as he remains with the Spurs in his current role, his imprint will keep showing up in the team’s day-to-day work, with Wembanyama among the players who continue to speak highly of him.
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Wembanyama Opens Up About The Scare That Changed Everything
Victor Wembanyamas early-2025 blood clot scare did more than end his 2024-25 season with the Spurs ahead of schedule. It also forced a reset in how he sees himself, both as a player and as a person, and he has been open about the way the health issue changed his outlook on life and basketball.
For San Antonio, the most striking part is how that experience appears to have carried over into his day-to-day presence with the team. Wembanyama says he has become more expressive and emotionally engaged, and he has linked the ordeal to both personal growth and better play, a reminder that the biggest developments around a young star are not always measured in points or blocks. [Read more 🡒]
Wembanyama Brought A Wild Halloween Look To Wolves Night
Victor Wembanyama turned the pregame scene into part costume party, part pop-culture nod before the Spurs took on the Timberwolves, showing up dressed as Geralt of Rivia from The Witcher. It fit neatly with his well-known interest in fantasy literature, and it also continued a Halloween tradition that has become a little annual subplot around the Spurs, with other players joining in on the fun.
For San Antonio, the timing added a bit of extra color to a night that came with some momentum after a recent winning streak. Wembanyamas third Halloween-themed NBA arrival was less about the game itself than the personality around it, the kind of detail that makes a young star feel larger than the box score before the opening tip. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Have A Delicate Balance As Wembanyama And Fox Roll
While Victor Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox have helped keep San Antonio moving in the right direction, the Spurs are still managing the health side of the ledger carefully. Head coach Mitch Johnson said the team is taking a methodical, patient approach with Harris as he works back from a calf strain, a reminder that the early part of the season is about more than just the standings for a team trying to build something sustainable.
Wembanyama is still producing at a career-best scoring pace even while dealing with shooting struggles, and Fox continues to look like a steadying force at point guard after turning in a strong all-around line with 22 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Stephon Castle also showed his toughness by playing through a migraine in a recent game, which speaks to the competitive edge inside the locker room, but the Spurs know the bigger picture depends on keeping the rotation intact and getting everyone back to full strength at the right time. [Read more 🡒]