Translator's Note: The original article was published in Bleacher Report. The data in the article are as of the time of the original publication (October 23, local time), and the dates and times involved are all local time.

In June 2023, on the morning after the San Antonio Spurs selected Victor Vunbanyama with the No. 1 pick, legendary NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski placed unprecedented high expectations on him.

"He has a very good chance of being selected as an All-Star in his rookie season," Adrian Wojnarowski said on ESPN's "Get Up" program. "There are a lot of executives in the NBA who I respect very much who believe that by his third or fourth season, he may be the best player on both ends of the court."

It turns out that Wenbanyama was not selected as an All-Star in his rookie season. Now he’s entering his third season — and that second prediction is coming true.

In his debut in the 2025-26 season, Bunyama faced the Dallas Mavericks, mainly "defended" by Anthony Davis. In the end, he scored 40 points, 15 rebounds and 3 blocks.

Wenban Yama made 15 of 21 shots from the field. In the Spurs' 125-92 road win, he posted a plus-minus of +31, all in just 30 minutes of playing time.

Words really can't describe his performance because as you may have heard, we've never experienced anything like this in sports. Bunyama's performance has to be seen to be believed.

There are hints of Giannis Antetokounmpo in Vunbanyama - such as the amazing combination of height, wingspan and athleticism, as well as guard skills in a big man's body - but Vunbanyama is even taller.

Vinbanyama is also a smoother jump shooter, which is why people compare him to Kevin Durant. The difference between them (other than height and wingspan) is that the Frenchman is the best rim protector and most dominant defender in the NBA. In his prime, Durant was a good defender, but he never quite reached that level.

Vinbanyama also has some things in common with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in his prime, and it's not just in terms of defensive impact. After training with Hakeem Olajuwon over the summer, Bunyama's low post skills have become even more proficient.

At only 22 years old, Wenbanyama is enough for people to compare him with all the above-mentioned historical players. Even with a stature of 7 feet 4 inches (about 2.24 meters), it is very difficult to integrate so many technical elements into one body. However, Vunbanyama did it.

This was on vivid display in Wednesday's game.

Despite being constantly defended by Davis, Vunbanyama had little trouble dribbling to the basket against perimeter defenses. When Bunyama can't break into the paint, he can still hit difficult jumpers. In those rounds, Bunyama almost looked like he was showing off his skills. It's like he recognized the defender in front of him and thought, "Wouldn't it be fun if I did a few crotch dribbles and then hit a step-back three?"

And that's what Vunbanyama did.

Vinbanyama doesn’t just create scoring opportunities himself. Finishing the offense also requires skills, and Wenbanyama has scored through alley-oops many times. He outperformed the Mavericks' big men in transition. He moves off the ball like a defender.

All in all, this game looked more like a bunch of kids playing with a toy hoop in the basement. Wenbanyama is the big brother. He was bigger, better, and maybe even more vicious than anyone else.

Even though Davis is ten years older and weighs 20 pounds more (about 9 kilograms), he looks very much like his aggressive brother. He tried to guard his opponent, but in the end, all Vunbanyama had to do was put the ball in the basket almost at eye level with him.

Again, this is facing Anthony Davis' defense. Davis was an All-Star last season. If he plays enough games, he'll likely be named to the All-Defensive team for the sixth time. If Benyama can do that with Davis so easily, imagine what he'll do against Deandre Ayton or Joc Landale. Consider rookie Ryan Kalkbrenner, who is already starting at the five for the Charlotte Hornets.

It's almost certain that we haven't seen Bunyama's best performance yet this season.

When you consider the way Vunbanyama impacts the game on both ends of the floor, he's already in the "best player in the world" discussion even in a league that boasts Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Thinking back to when Bunyama was drafted, Adrian Wojnarowski’s reports at the time sounded exaggerated to the point of being untrue. He also said that Bunyama might be the greatest rookie in the history of professional sports - and that might be the case.

Just over two years later, Bunyama made the original analysis almost seem conservative.

Author: Andy Bailey

Translator: GWayNe