Wembanyama Fires Six-Word.
Due to the referees’ apparent inaction over Victor Wembanyama, Spurs supporters have been shouting at their TV screens throughout the season. Even though the young Frenchman is the biggest man on the court, the zebras can’t see what’s happening in front of them, and he gets battered almost every time he goes to the paint.
It is not entirely unexpected, as the trend of foul calls in the league has been trending downward. The NBA has made a course correction by telling referees to allow players to play through contact a little more because they had become a little soft. They haven’t completely eliminated fouls, but that’s okay and even better for the game’s health.
This statistic demonstrates the stark disparity in free throw attempts between Wemby and the other high-usage players.
Wembanyama’s missed calls cost the Spurs all the time.
It’s true that Wemby is somewhat to blame for the 3.4 turnovers he averages per game. Sometimes he loses the ball due to obvious contact, but other times he overdribbles and needs to quit carrying the ball low when there are lesser defenders around.
The Clippers game was the most recent instance of a flagrant non-whistle. Wemby got up and charged LA’s big man after he handed the ball over for a blatant foul and was slammed in the back by Ivica Zubac, sending him flying to the ground. Not a whistle. The sophomore star’s night was difficult. After the game, he even acknowledged that he thought he wasn’t given a fair whistle.
Twenty-three players in the league make at least eighteen field goals every game on average. Despite being one of them, Wembanyama ranks 50th in terms of the number of free throws attempted per game (4.1). You may think it’s because Vic makes so many three-pointers, but Tyrese Maxey, Jayson Tatum, and Luka Doncic all shoot more than the Alien and rank in the top 20 in the FTA.
In fact, things become worse when you examine the numbers more closely. Wembanyama shot 2.9 free throws per night in January, but he only averaged 8.4 3-pointers per game, compared to greater averages in November (10.4) and December (9.5). That is a ridiculously low figure.
Wemby has only tried 5.5 three-pointers per game and averaged 7.5 free throws in the two games played in February thus far. However, the sample size is far too tiny to conclude that anything has changed in a meaningful way. Simply by following the quick guard when he attacks the paint, ready to catch a pass or clean up a missed attempt, playing with De’Aaron Fox might result in extra opportunities inside.
It doesn’t really matter how many threes the sophomore star makes as long as it results in victories. His three-point shooting has helped the Spurs win a number of games this season. However, he has to improve his free-throw efforts. However, since that is a referee issue, someone ought to show them these absurd numbers.
