Victor Wembanyama made most people laugh in his first NBA season and he’s doing the same thing at the 2024 Olympics.
On Tuesday, when France and Japan faced off against each other, the 7-foot-4 Wenbanyama formed an incredible pairing with 5-foot-6 guard Yuki Togashi, helping France win 94-90 in overtime.
The match, which pitted the tournament’s tallest player against the shortest, became a social media sensation.
Wembanyama was no surprise in helping France win, finishing with 18 points, 11 rebounds and six assists in 31 minutes.
Meanwhile, Togashi made just 1 of 6 shots in nearly 12 minutes of play, scoring just three points.
The 20-year-old phenom’s talent has been apparent since his first NBA season, when he averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.6 blocks and 1.2 steals per game, winning Rookie of the Year and finishing as runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year.
That elite ability also translates into height: Wembanyama is 7 feet 4 inches tall, tied with the Rockets’ Boban Marjanovic as the tallest player in the league.
Featuring NBA veterans such as Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert, Nicolas Batum and former Knicks players Evan Fournier and Frank Ntilikina, France is a perfect 2-0 team in Group B.
Wenbanyama and the French team will face Germany in their final group stage match on Friday.
Meanwhile, Japan, featuring Rui Hachimura, former Net Yuta Watanabe and Pacers rookie Hironari Tominaga, is currently 0-2 and will face Brazil on Friday.
Wenbanyama, who plays for his native France, will make his Olympic debut at the 2024 Summer Olympics, having previously represented France at EuroBasket 2022 and in FIBA tournaments in 2019 and 2021.
In fact, the sensation set the FIBA record for most blocks per game in a single tournament in 2021, playing against Chet Holmgren’s USA team in the U-19 World Cup finals that same year.
