Earlier than the ball left the referee’s palms for the primary time within the common season in late October, the stress round Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Fort and the San Antonio Spurs will probably be palpable.
After a 12 months by which the NBA’s youngest staff – earlier than the arrival of Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes – had simply two extra wins than Wembanyama was, it was clear that the sky-high expectations positioned on the Silver & Black in what has been dubbed the “Wemby period” have been removed from being met.
Not less than within the first 12 months.
San Antonio’s offseason has confirmed its willingness to stay affected person with its roster and its general confidence in Wembanyama hasn’t but created a motive to panic, nevertheless it ought to take a step ahead in Wembanyama’s second 12 months in Texas.
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As that purpose strikes additional away or nearer to fruition, there will probably be milestones to hit, video games to look at and, most significantly, storylines to observe with the Spurs’ schedule.
Maybe probably the most fluid? The supposed “rivalry” between the Spurs and Thunder.
What initially gave the impression to be the case between Wembanyama and Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder heart Chet Holmgren – headlined by a showdown between the 2 throughout NBA Rivals Week – has since been taken off the agenda.
Rivals Week, as an alternative of giving the Thunder or Spurs an opportunity to face one another, now consists of 10 matchups, lots of which see groups repeating with a number of rivals.
For instance, the Denver Nuggets and Nikola Jokić will face the Philadelphia 76ers and their star Joel Embiid in a battle of the bigs, however they may even face the Minnesota Timberwolves and Anthony Edwards later within the week. LeBron James’ Los Angeles Lakers will face the Boston Celtics in a historic showdown, however may even face Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors.
Traditional and budding rivalries between groups and gamers will take heart stage throughout the third annual NBA Rivals Week.
The rivalries would be the focus of 10 nationally televised video games on 4 networks over 5 days from Jan. 21-25. pic.twitter.com/xYLEfRhq5Z
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) August 15, 2024
Wembanyama helped the Spurs clinch their first Christmas Day sport in eight years, which says loads about how the NBA views him as a future famous person, however and not using a “rival” this 12 months, it raises an fascinating query about whether or not or not rivalries must be created organically.
The Nuggets-Timberwolves matchup wasn’t a lot a rivalry as sport till final season’s playoffs. The identical goes for the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics, who don’t have any long-standing historical past past their assembly within the final NBA Finals.
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The Spurs and Thunder met 4 instances final season, together with three with Holmgren and Wembanyama, and the previous received solely a type of clashes. This season, there are three extra conferences scheduled, none of which can happen throughout the third version of Rivals Week.
A part of that call could be that each groups should be aggressive on their very own in an effort to create a real “rivalry.” Or maybe each gamers must view this as a rivalry themselves.
To this point, none of those claims are true.
“I don’t suppose Wemby was unfair in successful Rookie of the Yr or something,” Holmgren stated in a complimentary touch upon Wembanyama. “I imply, all credit score to him for an incredible season and the whole lot… and you recognize, we’re not rookies anymore.”
The Spurs and Thunder will enter subsequent season with their very own objectives. Oklahoma Metropolis is trying to show that its success can solely proceed to develop – which might not be a shock – whereas San Antonio is hoping to cross the brink of the aggressive interval.
Despite the fact that these objectives appear to coincide with confrontations between the 2 groups, this isn’t the case. And if a rivalry is brewing between the 2 younger groups, it could be current subsequent season.
Proper now, it isn’t seen that method. Not less than not by the NBA.
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