Victor Wembanyama has gone viral in recent summers for training with NBA legends and Chinese monks, but this summer, he's been much more focused on his area of improvement.
The only thing more interesting than watching Victor Wembanyama play is the way he trains. On the court, he combines dominant size and elite defense with offense finese and the occasional power play. Last summer, he spent the offseason training with Hakeem Olajuwon, Kevin Garnett, and Shaolin monks.
At the time, Wembanyama was recovering mentally from having his second NBA season stolen from him by blood clots. He fled to China to expand his mental game and focus on what's important to him, and then used Garnett as a sounding board to improve his intensity.
This summer, he's been clear about focusing on the physical more than the mental. He and several Spurs teammates traveled to France for a week of intense workouts, and Wemby has apparently taken things to a new level with his new regimen.
Victor Wembanyama Adds Rugby Training
In France, soccer is pretty easily the most popular sport. After that, games like basketball, tennis, and handball lag behind but are all growing in popularity.
France isn't a premier rugby nation like South Africa or New Zealand, but they have a pretty solid team. Of course, even the worst rugby player is probably more physical than the best NBA player. In an effort to avoid being pushed around and doing a little shoving himself, Wemby spent some time with France's team.
“To everyone’s surprise, the Frenchman took part in several drills during on-field training sessions, but also fully immersed himself alongside the Provence Rugby group, sharing the players’ day-to-day life," reported L'Équipe's Maxime Aubin.
Harrison Barnes joined him as well. Perhaps "Mr. 100 Percent" will spend next season as an enforcer?
Last summer, Wembanyama totally immersed himself in the Shaolan temple. He ate, read, and trained with the monks. This summer, he seems just as bought in, but he stayed closer to home.
It remains to be seen if he'll put on any noticeable muscle this summer. In the postseason, he got very physical with Naz Reid, Jalen Brusnon, and Mitchell Robinson, to the point that he was called a "dirty player."
With newly learned rugby tactics, expect him to be even more impactful and physically dominant.
