Vincent Frank
The debut of San Antonio Spurs rookie No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama Wednesday night was the story of the first full day of NBA action for the 2023-24 season.
Wembanyama and his Spurs hosted the Luka Doncic’s Dallas Mavericks in a primetime matchup televised by ESPN.
All eyes were on the 7-foot-4 French native as he made his regular season debut. While San Antonio ended up falling at home by the score of 126-119, it was a playoff-like atmosphere inside Frost Bank Center.
It also drew a ton of interest among NBA fans at home. According to NBA Communications, it was ESPN’s most-watched opening night game in 11 years with an average of 2.99 million viewers tuning it. It was also the most-watched Mavericks and Spurs non-Christmas game ever. As for his native France, NBA League Pass viewership in that country was up 220% from last year.
Rarely does a rookie make an impact like this in terms of television ratings and overall interest. But at this point, it’s becoming clear that Wembanyama is not your typical rookie.
The youngster struggled early on in his debut, scoring just six points in the first three quarters. However, he did come through in the final stanza as the homestanding Spurs made a run. That included scoring nine points within a four-minute span.
Victor Wembanyama stats (NBA debut): 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals 1 block
The interest in Wemby is now even more heightened with the regular season upon us. And in reality, the Association is looking to take advantage of this.
In fact, San Antonio’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday has been moved from a mere regional broadcast to NBA TV. It really is something to behold.
