For all he had already accomplished in life, San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama realized he truly had not done much.
Lying in a hospital bed awaiting surgery that could potentially save his life, much less an NBA career, Wembanyama waited for relief from a deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder.
It led the 21-year-old from France to take a two-week excursion to China to train his mind and body this summer. It spurred him to visit the NASA Space Center and broaden his imagination and his understanding of space exploration.
“I mean, life isn’t forever and there are some experiences we’re going to miss on, it is inevitable, but I’m going to miss on the least that I can,” Wembanyama said Monday. “I want to experience the most and this is something that I wanted to do and just because I’m in the NBA, I’m not going to keep myself from doing it. I want to experience those things.”
The health scare has led to a healthier, happier and even taller Wembanyama.
After being listed as 7-foot-3 in his first two seasons, Wembanyama is officially 7-4 and 240 pounds after another summer spent bulking up.
Wembanyama’s health, along with the return of De’Aaron Fox and the additions of Luke Kornet and No. 2 pick Dylan Harper, have fueled hopes the Spurs will end a six-year playoff drought.
“You see how hard he works and how motivated he is,” Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan said. “I think he’s super excited to see, and I think he’s ready. I think you guys are going to see a lot that’s going to shock you, and I think everyone’s excited and can’t wait to see him on the actual NBA court.”
Coming off winning Rookie of the Year in 2024, Wembanyama was literally towering over the world in the opening months of his second season in the NBA. In January, he played in Paris as an NBA player for the first time, debuted in the All-Star Game in February, was on course to win Defensive Player of the Year for a time and his popularity was growing faster than he did as a youth.
All of it halted when Wembanyama was diagnosed with a deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder shortly after the All-Star break, ending his season on Feb. 20.
“So, I don’t know where you heard it is thoracic on the thrombosis, but it was definitely a DVT,” Wembanyama said, clarifying speculation.
More concerning than not playing basketball, the blood clot in his right shoulder potentially could have traveled to his lungs and led to a life-threatening pulmonary embolism.
That led to Wembanyama to many doctor appointments and an urgent surgery.
“It is life-changing,” Wembanyama said. “I mean, spending so much time in hospitals and around doctors and hearing more bad news than I wish I heard. Of course, as you said, it is traumatic, but in the long run I think it’s going to be very beneficial, because even though I don’t wish it on [anybody], it makes you perceive classes that nothing else might have made you perceive.”
Not that Wembanyama was residing an unrestrained life earlier than his well being scare. Since becoming a member of the league as an 18-year-old, Wembanyama goes to mattress at 9 p.m., studying science fiction and fantasy novels and setting up Lego fashions.
However Wembanyama needed extra from his life.
“It’s a fairly distinctive rabbit gap you will get down for somebody of his age,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson mentioned. “He’s so intentional on the number of ways in which he tries to enhance as a participant and an individual. It’s actually one thing I’ve by no means witnessed or skilled in my time. It’s fairly curious. It’s fairly always attempting to push himself out his consolation zone and be taught new issues.”
So, Wembanyama adopted via on his need to discover the NASA Area Heart in Houston and to go to the Shaolin Temple in China and research Buddhism, meditation and bodily coaching with its monks.
“Coaching with the monks was an unimaginable expertise,” Wembanyama mentioned. “Very a lot out of my consolation zone. It was my intent from the beginning, however that’s most likely as far a bodily exercise as I’m used to doing. So it actually paid off when it comes to coaching and as a life expertise as a curious particular person. It’s simply nice.”
It led to Wembanyama to ship his first “actual kicks” throughout karate coaching and to extend his vary of movement.
“That is my finest summer time up to now,” Wembanyama mentioned. “I can inform the progress is simply unimaginable. I really feel higher, I look stronger and the dimensions says I’m heavier. So all the pieces is a inexperienced gentle.”
Reporting by The Related Press.
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