The NBA has never seen anything like Victor Wembanyama. The 19-year-old has set the basketball world ablaze, not only with his incredible skill set and ridiculous size but also because of his surname.
Wembanyama is likely to become the No. 1 pick by the San Antonio Spurs in this year’s NBA Draft on Thursday, June 22. He was absolutely dominant for Metropolitans 92 in France’s LNB Pro A with averages of 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game.
For those who are unfamiliar with his game, or curious about his name, The Sporting News has everything you need to know, including the proper way to pronounce Wembanyama.
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How do you pronounce Victor Wembanyama’s name?
The correct way to pronounce Victor Wembanyama’s name is “Wem-bahn-yah-muh.”
The NBA Draft is yet to release a pronunciation guide for Wembanyama, but there are several sources for this pronunciation, including from the man himself:
What is the origin of Victor Wembanyama’s name?
Wembanyama’s name is Congolese in origin. Wembanyama’s father, Felix, is from the Democratic Republic of Congo, while his mother, Elodie de Fautereau, is from France.
Wembanyama is ranked as the world’s 6,723,624th most common surname. The surname is incredibly unique and seemingly exclusive to Victor and his family.
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Where is Victor Wembanyama from?
Wembanyama was born in Le Chesnay, France in January 2004.
At seven years old, he began playing for Entente Le Chesnay Versailles. He then joined the youth system of Nanterre 92 as a 10-year-old.
Wembanyama began playing professionally in 2019, joining several teams from the LNB Pro A including Nanterre 92, ASVEL and Metropolitans 92 where he spent the 2022-23 season.
With averages of 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game, Wembanyama was named the LNB’s Most Valuable Player, Defensive Player of the Year and Best Young Player this season. He was also the league’s scoring and blocks champion.