:focal(979x322:981x320)/origin-imgresizer.eurosport.com/2025/11/03/image-5896804c-bf57-4ffa-abde-365487b4557e-85-2560-1440.jpeg)
Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs)
Credit: Imago
His words are powerful and clearly go out of the box in a timid NBA, after having mobilized in recent years for the Black Lives Matter movement in particular. “Every day I wake up, I watch the news, and I am horrified. I find it crazy that some people can give the impression, or imply, that the killing of civilians can be acceptable. When I read the news, sometimes I ask myself very deep questions about my own life“, launched “Wemby” on Tuesday.
Saying everything that’s on my mind would come at too high a cost for me
Intelligent, cultured and calm, the 22-year-old French phenomenon did not sign this release without thinking. And if his speech had a global impact, he weighed his words, while he is aware of the world in which he operates. “The Spurs communications department has tried to advise me, but I’m not going to sit here and come out with a politically correct speech (…) JI am also aware that saying everything that is on my mind would have too high a cost for me today. So I prefer not to go into too many details.” he confessed to The Teamagain speaking of the “courage” of those who dare to speak out.
In an increasingly extreme America that seems more divided than ever, such a stance can, however, have consequences. For the moment – and after this single outing – it is also not Colin Kaepernick, who became a pariah in the NFL after putting his knee on the ground during the American anthem in protest against racism. But in the current context in the United States, reactions can be virulent. And the multiple repercussions.
Not only negative repercussions?
Especially since Wemby is not just any player. Thanks to his talent and charisma, the French phenomenon is presented as the future face of the NBA, where he has become very bankable. And is one of the most talked about players, in the United States and outside the US borders thanks to his atypical profile which fascinates and his unique personality in the world of sport. However, he is a “foreigner” in the US as he recalled on Tuesday. And inevitably, setting yourself up as a protest symbol can have an impact on your image and your career. If the NBA is not the NFL (which wants to be more traditionalist and Republican) and has never been virulent against players who take a stand, we will have to wait a little and already observe the first possible reactions of spectators during its next match to realize this.
Open to his world, the former Nanterre man is nevertheless ready to take responsibility. Determined not to hide. “I think you really have to have gutshe confided again, referring to Guerschon Yabusele’s speech on X. Each of us must decide the price we are willing to pay.” And the consequences of such speaking out are not only negative. If he certainly did not do it for that reason, fans and brands also increasingly like athletes of this dimension who are not smooth. Those who have the shoulders to take advantage of their status to convey messages. Even if it means placing themselves as a symbol of a just cause. And also taking a few blows in passing.
