Ban Wemby. Save Basketball. - The Ringer
By Google News Sports ·
At some point, every sport must confront an uncomfortable question: Can an athlete become so good that allowing him to compete is fundamentally unfair? It’s a ridiculous proposition, of course. Until it isn’t.
Relatedly, on Wednesday night, Victor Wembanyama absolutely—almost single-handedly—destroyed the Dallas Mavericks, putting up career highs of 52 points and 24 rebounds, while adding eight blocks, in a San Antonio Spurs win. It was a marvel to watch; the Mavericks clawed back from a 19-point deficit only for Wembanyama to decide, with the capricious indignance of a Greek god, that enough was enough. At one point Wemby leapt so high, it seemed like his entire upper torso was above the rim. Or did he leap at all? Perhaps he just flew. After the game he murmured a koan of humility: “I wish I set better screens towards the end and made more free throws.” Which is to say: There’s a higher level to achieve here. If 52-24-8 is the baseline, what does next year look like? Hell, what does next week look like?
Wembanyama is a singular force and a certifiable spectacle. He’s a ridiculous proposition for any opponent. Which brings me to an even more ridiculous proposition.
With a new NBA season underway, the league finds itself at an unimaginable crossroads, all due to one superhuman man. Which is why I say this with both much trepidation and confidence: The NBA should ban Victor Wembanyama. Kick him out of the league. Send him back to the Euros, or to a monastic life, if that suits him. As it stands, at only 22 years old, he’s the best player basketball has ever seen, a phenom by any definition. But the league’s most extraordinary player presents a problem that the existing rules may not be capable of solving.
It’s not a novel concept: The history of professional…
Originally published by Google News Sports
