Newly-minted San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama received some high praise from his coach.

Victor Wembanyama and Gregg Popovich

The San Antonio Spurs closed their 2023-24 campaign on Sunday against the Detroit Pistons. While neither team was heading to the postseason this year, the game served as a send-off to the home crowd in San Antonio, who will undoubtedly head into next year with some high hopes.

Those good spirits come courtesy of rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama, who, in his first season, has already announced himself as one of the most potentially dominant players in the NBA and an impact performer for years to come.

Ahead of the Spurs’ game against the Pistons, head coach Gregg Popovich offered some incredible praise to his young superstar, saying that Wembanyama had exceeded the high expectations he had set for his rookie year, as Hector Ledesma of Clutch Points detailed.

“He was much more malleable and accepting of expanding his role, expanding his game, both defensively and offensively,” Popovich said of Wembanyama. “I’m sure—you’ll have to ask him if he was planning on leading the league in blocks when he came in, but that was like a requirement. We wanted him at the basket, and we wanted rebounding and blocking shots. He likes to shoot that three, so that was probably not exactly what he was expecting from me off the bat.”

Popovich didn’t stop there, going as far as comparing Wembanyama to Hall of Fame big man Tim Duncan, who helped lead the Spurs to five championships over his two decades in San Antonio.

“He’s a competitor. He wants to win,” Popovich said of Wembanyama. “Obviously he’s gifted, but I needed to show him that he’s gifted in a whole lot more ways than he knows. Expanding his game was really a priority. He’s made me understand that he has those Tim Duncan qualities of innate basketball IQ and a fire that he wants to be the best.”

Victor Wembanyama Was Expected to Be Great, But He’s Undeniably Ahead of Schedule

It was always the Spurs’ hope that Wemby would be their next Duncan, but no one could have thought it could happen this quickly

Victor Wembanyama Nikola Jokic

High expectations are placed on the shoulders of any first overall pick in the NBA, and the expectations for Wembanyama were even higher than normal, and not just because he stands at 7-foot-4. The combination of Wemby’s ability as a threat both inside and outside the paint is something the top level of basketball has not really seen before.

But even with the high expectations, Wembanyama has delivered in his rookie season, leading the league in blocks, teasing a quadruple-double on a few occasions, and instantly proving himself as one of the most effective defenders beneath the basket in the league. Wemby is a lock to be named Rookie of the Year, and even has an outside shot at winning Defensive Player of the Year.

The next step for Wembanyama and the Spurs, though, is winning more games. Despite the high marks Wembanyama achieved, San Antonio finished the year as one of the worst teams in the West.

Wembanyama is already earning comparisons to Duncan for his ability on the court. Next year, it’s time for him to prove it in the standings.