“Save Basketball, Ban Wemby”
“At some point, every sport has to face a difficult question: can an athlete become so dominant that allowing him to compete becomes fundamentally unfair?” David Shoemaker opened his provocative column for The Ringer with that challenge, published after Victor Wembanyama’s latest commanding performance.
The piece, which leparisien.fr reported carries both humor and provocation, argues that Wembanyama was so dominant in the San Antonio Spurs’ victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night that the only way to preserve competitive uncertainty in the NBA would be to exclude the French star. The column reads as satire. It reads as a compliment wrapped in absurdity.
Three Seasons in, the Bar Keeps Rising
Wembanyama, 22, arrived in the NBA in summer 2023 as the most coveted prospect in the draft, according to rfi.fr. Three seasons later, he has not disappointed. After a 2025 campaign cut short by a serious injury, he silenced skeptics in 2026, leading the Spurs to an NBA Finals appearance and finishing as a finalist for the league’s MVP award, rfi.fr reported.
Victor Wembanyama is an existential threat to the NBA. There’s only one reasonable solution: Ban Wemby. Save basketball. @DavidShoemaker:https://t.co/ZaXleuGe6K
The next season begins October 21, and the question hanging over it is whether this will be the year of his coronation, rfi.fr noted. October 21 is the date.
A Rhetorical Device, Not a Policy
Shoemaker’s argument, as leparisien.fr described it, is not a serious policy proposal but a rhetorical device: Wembanyama’s nightly brilliance has made him so overwhelming that the hypothetical of banning him has become a way to talk about how much he has changed the competitive balance of the league. The column lands at a moment when the Spurs have reached the NBA finals, and when Wembanyama, captain of the French national team, is coming out of what rfi.fr calls his best year in the United States.
League Confirms Wembanyama’s Return Date
Whether the 2026-27 season brings the ultimate confirmation remains the open question the league — and Wembanyama himself — will answer on the court starting October 21. The headline says it all: “Save basketball, ban Wemby.”
