Steph Castle: “That was the hardest game I ever played in my life… but it’s easy when you’ve got the best player in the world” (via @NBA)
Please let this man stay healthy forever
I hope someone blessed his knees with holy water and baby tears. I don’t wanna see his prime robbed from us
I dont think he ever had knee issues, I’m more scared for his ankles or any hard injury on a bad fould
Keep this man away from Dort, Carter, The Thompson Twins, …
😭
Spurs should trade for Dillon Brooks. To have an enforcer but also one less dirty player to worry about
edit: typo
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
Brooks for Wemby straight up. Who says no
Done!
We don’t need the tall guy when we got David Jones Garcia – the real 🐐
Def do not let Draymond anywhere near this man.
Balls will heal
see, wemby was 2 steps ahead. he got those bad boys removed at the shaolin temple last summer to minimize potential weakpoints
Dort practicing his superman dives before game 2 for sure
Need those Star Fox titanium legs
His structure/frame is so unusual. Going to be interesting to see how he holds up as he ages.
tree limbs stretch and twist in the wind, strengthening. a tree with stakes to prevent it bending, will snap in a slight breeze
Wemby is bamboo.
Please do not take over my yard, Master Wembanyama.
Start injecting his knees with stem cells.
He needs those collagen gummies and some kneesovertoes workouts
Gotta get Jordan Clarkson to do his voodoo magic for him
I think one plus at his size is that he doesn’t need to jump very high or very often, probably will save his knees a good bit of wear and tear. We can only hope though
he needs to go on a giannis type bulk. im always scared of him getting injured wth how skinny and lanky he is. One awkward landing and its over
No he doesn’t. People don’t understand having muscle isn’t going to help you stay healthy. Wemby needs to stay lean so his knees don’t have so much weight on them. That was the problem with Embiid. He had way too weight on his knee and they took a toll. Wemby just needs to keep doing what he is doing
The even better example is the 7’4 235lb Wemby staying healthy whereas the 7’4 300lb Zach Edey is unable to. Edey has the 65 lbs of bulk people want Wemby to get.
Exactly. If Edey lost at least 50 pounds he would probably stay healthy and actually play better. I feel like if Wemby bulked up he wouldn’t be as good tbh because it would slow him down. I think people don’t think Wemby is strong or something lol
They also do different things which demand different bulks.
I’ll also add that “less bulk= less hurt” isn’t necessarily true either. Lebron is bulkier than KD even though the latter has 2 inches on him, but obviously Lebron has been healthier throughout his career. This is why there are professional, salaried trainers whose job it is to figure out the healthiest physique for each player rather than armchair “HIT THE WEIGHT ROOM” commenters. But, moreso than anything else, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
LeBron should never be included in health discussions. He’s a cyborg alien at his baseline and not a useful basis for comparison.
Well considering we’re comparing to another cyborg alien it seems apt
Another example is Kawhi, he lost a lot of weight/muscle and he played outstanding this year. It was less pressure on his knees. AD’s fat ass needs to understand this too.
This, they killed Yao’s career bulking him up to play against Shaq.
Kareem is the model - 7’2” and 225, prioritized flexibility and mobility over bully ball.
There’s a happy medium though, and I don’t think Wemby and Embiid are remotely comparable in that regard. Embiid is 7’0” and although he’s listed as 280, I wouldn’t be shocked if he’s been 300+ for a good portion of his career. Wemby is 4-5 inches taller than him, yet weighs probably 40-70 lbs less.
If we assume that Wemby is indeed 7’4” and Embiid is indeed 7’0” 280, then a comparable weight for Wemby would be ~310 lbs. Nobody is saying that Wemby should get to that weight, but an extra 20ish lbs would absolutely help.
On the bright side though he rarely has to jump and when he does it’s a few inches
People don’t understand having muscle isn’t going to help you stay healthy.
This doesn’t apply to everyone, but in this case maybe. I’m saying this for example Curry bulked up his bottom half and core for more stability after his ankle injuries. However that involved more than just building muscle, he also changed tehcnique.
He doesn’t need to gain 50 pounds, he needs to gain 5-10 pounds. He’s already looking bigger and stronger and a bit more weight will help him deal with some stronger guys. 7’5 245⁄250 isn’t comparable to Embiid being 7’0 and 280.
embiid was also a fatass obsessed with sugar drinks and falling to the floor every play like an oaf
I think, unsurprisingly, wemby himself has the best take on this. He knows he actually does need to get some more mass on him to help in his role, but he also knows gaining too fast puts it’s own wear on your body. I think he said his goal was 10-12 pounds of lean mass gain per year (obviously not forever).
Personally I do think another 20-25 pounds would be useful for him without putting too much strain on his ligaments/tendons
Does he? I would not call Giannis the bastion of player health
I’d push back and argue that for his size, build, and playstyle, Giannis has actually been remarkably healthy for his career. Maybe he’s not gonna play 70+ games every year, but other than this year, he’s essentially been a lock for 60+ games his entire career. He gets some nagging injuries over the course of the season that will keep him out a few weeks, but there’s never been anything seriously long term.
Prior to this season, which I won’t count because it’s arguable how much of his missed games were even due to injury, he’s played in 89% of his team’s regular season games. I think if you told Spurs fans that Wemby would play in ~90% of games the rest of his career, they’d be fucking ecstatic.
Wemby can shoot and won’t have to go as hard in the paint all the time like giannis. Plus on a better team so he doesn’t have to do everything, can coast some, and doesn’t have to play as much cuz blowouts.
Wemby can’t be as jacked as LeBron, but he could be pretty close to Giannis since they both have similar body frame
Sure but the question was does adding that bulk suddenly make you less injury prone
He needs to get on the Rudy conditioning plan. They have somewhat similar builds and Rudy has been an ironman (and looks chiseled from granite).
Wemby cited Rudy as a model for big man phyisque and durability, so I’m pretty sure that’s what he has in mind
Nah man KD, is the one to emulate
Yeah KD only missed significant time once before 30. Then bounced back from an Achilles. Dude just played 78 games at 37.
and kevin garnett too
Jones fracture, Achilles tear, MCL sprain (twice). The fact that KD still has elite production is nuts.
more weight means more for the legs to support
No him and his trainer specifically talked about this when he was drafted that the goal was to get Wemby stronger but not bulky. Wemby with Giannis’ physique is about 300 pounds, that’s how you get chronic foot ankle and knee issues
I’d rather he not.
He could use added strength but that may not include bulking.
Giannis’ shooting got worse when he started bulking.
He came in the league around 210 and is around 235-240 now at 22. He will continue to gain a little more weight over time. I can seem him around 250-255 by the time he is 25-27.
I think adding weight would be a huge mistake.
He needs to improve strength more than he needs the bulk, which I think he’s been doing. Although they obviously go hand in hand.
Has nobody else noticed that he’s already starting to get big?
Vibes are immaculate
im afraid gravity is against tall players like remember the short career of yao ming?
Some of his turnovers were rough, but to be fair being the primary ball handler against OKC is a tall order, especially when he’s not a natural PG. But even then he made some great passes and played great defense. The Spurs are set for numerous years man
the pass to Vassell in the corner (can’t remember which quarter) was one of the prettiest passes I’ve seen in a while
When he realized the refs aren’t gonna blow their whistles after trying for a few possessions, he immediately just opted for the right plays on the succeeding ones instead of being stubborn then complaining about it.
I was getting frustrated, but I’m glad he “settled” and figured out how to impact the game without forcing it.
Someone tell Luka this.
Luka was actually exactly what I had in mind when I made that comment.
Luka no speaky English in those situations
He had a couple in both OTs that were so fire.
there were actually two that come to mind in overtime
Yeah, he did it in just a few minutes. Looking like Luka with those dimes
Still feels weird how long Sochan was talked about as a member of the core to quickly dropping off
Carter Bryant stole Sochan’s thunder (No pun intended) and most likely the Spurs are going to draft a 4⁄5 this year with the Hawks pick and/or rehab Zacharie Risschaer when the Hawks give up on him and Zach pulls a Boris Diaw and reunites with his childhood friend on the Spurs so Karim Lopez or Bobo 2.0 ahoy!
Sochan was so hyped. What really happened with him? Is it cause he can’t shoot at all?
He’s just an extreme diet Draymond, good defense not great, no consistent offense even after improving his touch around the rim, passing is solid but not enough to really matter
The Spurs did him a solid and let him go to try and establish himself elsewhere. They probably could’ve just kept him rostered cause he’s better than having 3 3rd string big men on the roster, but Sochan just couldn’t work with the roster the Spurs have. Sochan paired with any of the 3 lead guards or Keldon led to some extremely painful lineups
He clogged up all the space Wemby provided and has been replaced by Carter Bryant who’s defense and shooting has been better.
He couldn’t shoot to save his life and apparently, he wasn’t as focused on developing his game as much as he should’ve due to off court shit if you believe Marcin Gortat.
Sochan plays like he has undiagnosed ADHD. All gas, no brakes. He has hands like rocks, a knuckleball shot, and is turnover prone when he does have the ball. It’s like he never got over that rookie mentality of trying to do too much
just watch the knicks this post-season when he plays garbage mins. He had 10pts one game IIRC but he’s really awkward around the rim and is just deferring a lot even when there’s zero pressure.
Maybe that’s how he’s being coached right now but he’s not doing anything special.
Goddamn if that was even a little bit off, that was going out. The precision to get that off with that much heat behind it? Chefs kiss
Shades of Luka on that pass. Overhead skip to the corner in traffic. And the next play, or soon after, they mirrored the action and he skipped it to the opposite corner. Thats great coaching and great promise from the young guard.
I remarked as much in the game thread. Perfectly timed, too.
This is only going to make him better tho. Still just a 2nd year player playing against one of the best defenses in this past decade
All the talk about being so young has been about Harper and extremely deserved Harper has been absolutely amazing this playoffs but Castle is in his second year year doing this while guarding the best player on the other team. Wemby was literally superhuman this game but it was an amazing team win as well.
Harper’s drives are more aesthetically pleasing*, whereas Castle mostly tries to barrel through people and maybe slow step at the end. I think the way Harper makes it look compared to Castle is why people are more effusive about Harper
*except when Castle is monster jamming on people’s heads
dude, Castle’s drives when it looks like he’s been stopped and then takes one last slowass dribble before jumping off both feet and jamming it are awesome to see
He’s a year 2 player in his first season at PG since high school against maybe the best perimeter defense since the Jordan Bulls
He has to clean up some of the turnovers, but this is also to be expected. Especially without Fox to relieve any pressure.
By all means, I’m still impressed by his two-way showing
He reminds me of a bigger Jrue Holiday a bit
A slightly bigger Jrue/slightly smaller Jimmy have always been my fav comps
I don’t hate that comp. 2x champ, 2x all star, and 6x all d.
He’s got plenty of time to grow.
Him and Harper are unfair to get to grow with Wemby. Lol
He was picked up full court for 48 min, the pressure went up
They were also just playing extremely physical and were constantly reaching and slapping at the ball. That is tough to deal with.
if your lead guard had 11 turnovers for the game, you should have no shot in hell to win a basketball game. but man, Wemby is that good that he just willed the Spurs to the win.
There were a bunch of spots where it looked like the game could’ve been over but they went on some crazy dry streaks.
especially when he’s not a natural PG
Um, have you EVER watched Castle play? He’s a great 1 guard. That’s where he’s the best prospect.
Is the bite an eren jaeger reference?
It really looks like it. Wemby is the attack titan confirmed?
Wemby is the colossal titan
That day, OKC received a grim reminder
If this series goes to 7 games, wemby will show up naked just to unleash his full colossal titan powers
I hope so. Err, I mean, I hope so
He’s more like the Colossal titan.
So he’s either an attack titan, going gear 2, or he’s copying the legendary Fabio Borini with the a knife between his teeth
Edit: gear 3
It would be Gear 3 FYI
I also thought gear 3 initially because One Piece is huge in France.
Definitely a borini callback. Victor often waxes about Liverpool before their ownership change to FSG. He credits those days as a fan that helped shaped him as the man he is today /s
Wemby is a massive nerd. Reads the stormlight books and referenced anime.
none taken, jeez
Your username reminds me of the GOAT duo, Stephen Curry and Andris Biedrins lmao
Lmao I’m halfway through S1 and I turned into the Leo pointing meme when I saw him bite his hand
yes ahahah
Wemby is the attack titan confirmed
There is only 1 titan perfect for wemby and it’s the colossal titan
A smaller Wemby crawls out of him to do the postgame pressers
Lmao if him biting his hand was in any way, an attack on titan reference then Wemby just solidified himself as one of my favorite players ever 😂
That bite should definitely be his on court celebration after he does something epic. That should be version of good night by Steph
how come I just realized the wemby titan comparison, that is such a cool branding/nickname opportunity
I’m telling you! And it fits so well. He needs to start doing it on the court. The graphics would be crazy.
Wemby is a huge nerd, and yes, anime is definitely one of his many special interests. And he has specifically cited AoT as one of his favorite anime series. There’s an ad he did a while ago where he mentioned it.
He’s HUGE into mainstream culture and you’ll see these references from him all season long.
Ok he is my goat now
He also collects Pokemon cards and plays Magic the Gathering.
I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if he’s a DnDer as well. Dude is straight up the very definition of a nerd.
Wemby plays a halfling rogue in Timmy’s DND campaign?
ok but what is his warhammer 40k army
Gotta wait for the max contract to afford that shit haha
Last year he was photographed at a random card shop here looking for his rookie card.
It was!
Holy shit, I just posted the same thing in this thread and scrolled down to see your comment. I’m like wtf, like this dude couldn’t get any cooler.
Right? Dude is such a breath of fresh air
Spurs have great chemistry for such a young team. Love to see it
What can’t you like about these guys? No ego, they play with an amazing synergy! 🩶
Wemby 100% has an ego, he’ll be hated in a couple of years
He has the utmost confidence and belief in himself that he is the best player in the world but he also holds himself accountable and doesn’t think he’s above doing the little things to help the team win.
One of the top comments in the Thunder sub’s post game thread is:
I fucking hate Wemby so god damn much. He’s an arrogant fucking prick.
This is how people who dislike him will see his confidence.
Alex Caruso = Cocky confidence Wemby = humble confidence
there, I fixed it
My mom despises Steph to this day due to his mouth guard chewing during the heyday of the cavs rivalry (she lives in cleveland). I still think about that and how one little action can make someone a hated nemesis when they’re actually pretty chill almost all of the time.
Hate is easier than love.
He has an ego, but outside of being overly critical and scrutinizing him in an intentionally negative way in bad faith, it’s not an unlikeable ego.
I hate him now
It makes me sad that, because literally everything he will say or do will be recorded that eventually he’ll slip or something will be taken out of context, and the hate will begin to flow. Hopefully he doesn’t do anything BAD bad but he’s only 22. Lots of time left for it to happen.
Hasn’t that already happened with the ethical basketball quote? He said in that interview (you know, the part that wasn’t clipped) that he thinks of ethical hoops as sharing the ball around and not playing selfishly, but everyone is taking it to be a shot against flopping.
This 1000% its so annoying how ppl are using that ethical comment against him but the better he becomes and the better he gets, the more hate he will get and that’s just fact unfortunately.
If the Spurs win enough the hate will come regardless.
No wayyy he did the attack on titan celebration. Vic knows he’s been blessed with the Colossal.
Vic knows anime ball
Most “rookie” teams making a run - you can just tell that they’ll look good all regular season and then not show up in playoffs against vets.
I feel like there’s something about Spurs culture and the way that their previous ATG players show up and Pop being Pop that they do not have that vibe at all. These guys look like they’re vets and the team to beat in their first playoff run together. I don’t even care if it goes to 7 and they end up losing the series. Birth of a dynasty vibes and I’m here for it
People are gonna tell me “oh wait until they’re the best team you’ll hate them, too” nah I really do not think so
It’s just not the same. Previous dynasty was also respected and to be honest I really think the Warriors also played great ball during their years, it was easier to hate the whole KD saga but they played a game I actually liked to watch, same can’t be said about the Harden Rockets or the SGA’s Thunder.
Yeah, it’s poetry in motion. Like Indiana and the power of friendship and passing the rock. That was the closest thing we’ve had since SA… No ball hoggers just ethical hoopers.
We only hated the warriors when they had KD because the rest of the league didn’t have the firepower to match. Plus KD pulled a weak move that removed OKC as a potential rivalry
People hated the warriors in 2016 that’s what happens when you win a championship. All of a sudden you’re not the darling young team that is coming up, the spurs are in the same spot the warriors were in 2015 if they win … the disdain will come.
I also think at a certain point, talent can just take over when it’s this rare of a combo, like when young OKC just took over a series against the vet Spurs.
Wemby might be the greatest talent I’ve ever seen, at least up there with young LeBron. Combine that with Harper who looks to me like an mvp level talent and Castle who we’ve seen take over while being one of the best perimeter defenders already it’s pretty insane they’re all under 23.
If these guys had their own team we’d say each is the pillar to build around.
There’s such an incredible wealth of knowledge for them to lean on. Carter Bryant mentioned that he talks to Pop every day which is incredibly cool since Pop was never his actual head coach. And Wemby said he doesn’t feel the pressure of living up to the legacy of those who came before him because he knows they’ll be there to catch him when/ if they fall.
dearth
Probably not the word you were going for lol
More like wealth haha
“dearth” = scarcity
Love the word dearth but you prob mean the opposite
Same, as a neutral fan I can’t see myself ever disliking this squad.
Wemby being the founding titan is CRAZYYYYY
I’m so fucking here for it
Was that Wemby hittin the AoT transformation hand bite? 😂
If every game is going to be like this we are in for a treat
If every game is like this, all my hair is going to fall out by the end of the series.
You body pays respect to monk Wemby and Keldon
Edit: and the BUFFALO that was once here
Relevant flair
I think I am now a spurs fan
Welcome, now go honking
Wemby’s performance reminded me of Lebron’s 2007 game 5 in Detroit. Basically him announcing “My time is now, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.”
Holy shit he’s not even in titan form yet we’re cooked
I love that there are so many anime fans in basketball now. Need some team to make a special jersey with an anime reference
The anime x basketball fandom crossover is real. Its pretty cool
Dylan Harper is incredible but I dunno that I’d call him the best in the world just yet
There was a timeline where this man was never gonna play again…
We have to cherish every moment and never take it for granted
Was there?
Blood clot incident.
That never jeopardized his career. Several players have gotten blood clots and played healthy careers. I think even Brandon Ingram is one of them.
Was him biting his hand a AoT reference?
Bruh did the best player in the world and future GOAT candidate just reference Attack on Titan after a conference finals win? Wemby my favourite player confirmed lol
Is that a AOT reference? Mayn he just skyrocketed up my fav list 🙏
This kid,Wemby, is so likable
The vibes are immaculate
It’s gonna be funny on Reddit when Wemby becomes the most hated player
Everyone laughing at the Thunder now but shits gonna be a big problem next season for all of us 🤣
Oh next year everyone will hate him. They will say every block he gets is a goal tend. He’s a flopper. He isn’t good a guarding other good big men.
SGA just got his 2nd MVP and the perception of him being the best player over Joker was cemented. Then game 1 Wemby happened. SGA might have had the shortest reign at being the best player in the league I’ve seen.
This is the most reactionary sports league in the world. If SGA scores 40 next game in a win and Wemby has 14⁄10 then it’s back the other way lol
I remember when talking heads and many fans said Spurs will lose the series after game 1 against Wolves. Its nice that we won but its not even close to the time to draw any conclusions - well except that Wembanyama is pretty fucking good at the game of basketball.
Yeah. It’s only been a few weeks since the Spurs were cooked after losing game 1 to Minnesota at home.
SGA is too good, OKC is too well coached, and San Antonio is too young for “Spurs win the series easily and Wemby is the GOAT” to be what we’re talking about a week from now. I say this as a Spurs fan.
This is wemby. People are just starting to pay attention.
No one thinks SGA is better than Jokic. Corny little narrative you stewed up
Horrible look for the Denver man-child stereotype
Let em know Steph!!!
It’s going to be OKC and Spurs for the next decade isn’t it. East doesn’t stand a damn chance lmao.
Did my mans just do the eren titan bite transformation
“Best player in the world” OO TAKIN SHOTS
Wemby looks just like a big little kid , he’s loving every second of it.
Stephan castle is one of the coolest mfers in the league
It’s unreal how young these guys are and playing at this level in the WCF. It just shouldn’t be happening this soon for this core
Love the quote and the attitude, but 2OT is never easy, cmon now
It will be so funny if the Spurs sweep OKC
Prime shaq agaisnt wemby? Who wins or can neither gaurd each other?
I do think Orlando shaq gives wmeby trouble with his quickness
Prime Shaq lol
He was unimaginable strong and dominant
At times Wemby still sits around the perimeter and doesn’t use his size on smaller guys
Shaq would be rolling to the paint non stop and there wouldn’t be an answer
Chet woulda been broken in 2
Prime Shaq in today’s league is getting called for way more offensive fouls and he’s getting abused on defense with today’s spacing. He mocks Gobert for how he looks guarding the perimeter but prime Shaq would have been much, much worse at that. He’d be BBQ chicken on the perimeter in a way that Orlando Shaq wouldn’t be. Prime Shaq is also getting tortured by the speed and switching of today’s game. If he played today he wouldn’t balloon up. He’d stay closer to his Orlando build but still keep putting on muscle, like Giannis (who gets away with about as many bulldozing offense fouls as you can these days) but bigger. People like to exaggerate “Shaq was so big he was unstoppable” which is super popular to say but that was not actually true if you watched him (same with the hyperbole of how often he was fouled). Smaller, lighter guys did guard Shaq and he wasn’t breaking scoring records. He’d still be a top 10 ATG if he played today, but he’d be different
The whole Spurs team took Wemby not winning MVP personal, i love to see things like this.