OKC Thunder: Chet Holmgren Says There’s No Beef With Victor Wembanyama

The Thunder’s star sophomore quieted the rumors about potential beef with Victor Wembanyama.

Feb 29, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) and San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) battle for position in the first half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports / Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports

Chet Holmgren’s journey to the NBA was well documented and full of outside hype. From the time he was in high school, he was a heralded prospect that was under a magnifying glass. To this point in his career, he has lived up to every expectation.

The same can be said for Spurs rising superstar Victor Wembanyama. The 7-foot-4 specimen was the most heralded prospect since LeBron James and has the highest expectations of any rookie across the last 20 years.

With Holmgren’s foot injury that caused him to miss his rookie season, the stars aligned for the two to technically share the same rookie season. Of course, this opened another chapter of the Holmgren-Wembanyama rivalry. Technically, the battles began internationally, as the two squared off for Team USA and France. Through the pre-draft process, both players were compared to one another because of their similar styles of play. And last season, we finally got to see them on the court in NBA action.

In each matchup, Holmgren and Wembanyama went right at eachother, playing like they had something to prove. It was must-see television — and an example that the league is in good hands moving forward.

It might’ve been a budding rivalry beginning for the basketball world, but for the two players it was just fierce competition.

“I would just say us being competitors,” Holmgren explained on Paul George’s podcast. “We played against each other before we were even in the NBA. People be like ‘Y’all got beef?’ I’m like beef? We’re out there competing, but beef means when I see you we’re fighting, you know what I mean? Why do I got beef with him? I honestly don’t even know the guy. We just play basketball against each other. 

“As competitors, neither of us wants to lose, and neither of us wants to let the other person get a bucket or anything. We’re always going to compete and if people take it as we got beef, those people don’t really understand competing I guess.”

Chet talks about his rivalry with Wemby, state there’s no beef between them:
pic.twitter.com/gAVUoaqOAV

— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) August 19, 2024

It’s no surprise that Holmgren doesn’t view his battles with Wemby as a personal rivalry. The two have never had issues on the court and both players seem like level-headed guys. The NBA is certainly trying to push the rivalry by giving Oklahoma City and San Antonio prime time slots — and going as far as to schedule the Thunder and the Spurs for rivalry week a season ago.

The battles will continue to be entertaining, especially as the Spurs improve, but there’s nothing personal off the court. For now, it’s just the next generation of NBA stars battling it out

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