All eyes on… Wemby. Barely arrived and already – almost – at the summit. According to a study published by the NBA a few days ago, Victor Wembanyama is the second most “viral” player in the prestigious North American basketball championship. In other words, the videos of the San Antonio Spurs player’s arabesques published on the League’s multiple social networks since the start of the season have generated 508 million views.
His spectacular dunks, his authoritarian counterattacks, his blind and acrobatic passes or even this little bridge over Reggie Bullock (Houston) in October are watched endlessly on the networks and make Wemby a unique player.
This ranking is a rare performance for a rookie – and for a player whose team is stuck at the bottom of the ranking and is suffering multiple defeats – but it confirms the incredible popularity, the enthusiasm around the French prodigy. Wemby, who will celebrate his 20th birthday on January 4, is only ahead of “King” LeBron James in this ranking. The videos of the four-time NBA champion and Lakers star have been viewed almost 800 million times, 756 million to be exact.
Victor Wembanyama left it all on the floor for the Spurs!
???? 21 PTS
???? 20 REB
???? 4 BLKWemby becomes the only player to record a 20-PT, 20-REB, 4-BLK game this season. pic.twitter.com/ikBgRq8KDr
— NBA (@NBA) December 9, 2023
On the list Victor Wembanyama grills politeness and is ahead of regulars of the genre: the Warriors’ long-distance shooter Stephen Curry, 415 million views, or even Kevin Durant (one of his models) and Giannis Antetokounmpo, tied with 259 million views. views. The brilliant Luka Doncic (Dallas) is in 6th place with 199 million views.
Furthermore, the demiurge of French basketball has seen his community on Instagram almost double since the evening of the last draft which crowned him. He now has 3.3 million followers compared to 1.7 million last June and… 109,000 a year earlier. On the X network (formerly Twitter) he went from 80,000 to more than 312,000 followers in a few months. A craze that is only in its infancy.
