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Victor Wembanyama Reacts to Lob City Clippers Comparisons With Chris Paul

The San Antonio Spurs are drawing comparisons to the Lob City LA Clippers.

Joey Linn

San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul (3) and center Victor Wembanyama (1) during Media day at Victory Capital Performance Center in San Antonio.
San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul (3) and center Victor Wembanyama (1) during Media day at Victory Capital Performance Center in San Antonio. / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
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San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama is unlike anyone else in NBA history. While there are no comparisons to Wembanyama, some have drawn parallels between this Spurs team and the Lob City LA Clippers teams.

The reason for this comparison is Chris Paul. Like in 2011 when he joined the high-flying All-Star forward Blake Griffin after his rookie season, Paul is joining Wembanyama after his first year.

The Clippers went from 32-50 in Griffin’s rookie season to 40-26 in the lockout-shortened 2011-12 season (Paul’s first with the team). Paul was All-NBA and All-Defensive first team that year, averaging 19.8 points, 9.1 assists, and a league-leading 2.5 steals.

While the Paul-Wembanyama duo hopes to bring a similar turnaround to San Antonio this season, the 7-foot-4 phenom isn’t leaning into the Lob City comparisons. In a recent article, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News said Wembanyama was asked about connecting with Paul for lobs like Griffin did in Los Angeles.

“Unlike Griffin in 2011, Wembanyama says he did not greet Paul’s impending arrival into his life with visions of alley-oop dunks dancing in his head,” McDonald wrote.

On this, Wembanyama said, “This is one of the first things that teams think about to guard. So it’s not as easy as it seems to throw lobs.”

Victor Wembanyama and Chris Paul
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) and guard Chris Paul (3) pose for photos during Media day at Victory Capital Performance Center in San Antonio. / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

While Wembanyama is of course 7-foot-4, he is a different lob target than Griffin and DeAndre Jordan were. Operating much more on the perimeter, Wembanyama is not always looking to score off a lob. That said, this will be a new element San Antonio can unlock in their offense.

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Joey Linn
JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.

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