Victor Wembanyama is enjoying his offseason by playing soccer with kids in Costa Rica, demonstrating his commitment to his DVT rehabilitation. Amazingly, he was not the goalkeeper. Here he is dribbling on the pitch.
That isn’t all he’s done; he’s also played chess against fans in Washington Square Park. It all contributes to his reputation as one of the NBA’s cool people.
This is exactly what I want to see during his downtime. He’s safely back in action and expanding his skill set. Expect Wembanyama’s footwork to improve even further.
Playing soccer can provide huge benefits to an NBA player since it enhances agility. The great Hakeem Olajuwon stated that having a background in soccer was his “foundation,” since such actions allowed him generate the lethal fakes and hesitation maneuvers. According to Mirin Fader’s biography, Dream, he also told coach Pete Newell during his basketball camp, “I play soccer,” when asked how he learned to move as he did.
Kobe Bryant’s background included soccer. He stated in a 2017 interview that it helped him grasp space and angles. In 2009, when asked what he would do without hoops, he replied that he would play soccer. His disciple, former Spur DeMar DeRozan, stated on “The Old Man and the Three” podcast two years ago that Bryant urged him to watch soccer to observe how the players moved their bodies.
Wembanyama, a soccer lover, has jokingly stated that he is “ready” to sign with Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, France’s top side. This season, he’s been observed juggling with his legs or with Sandro Mamukelashvili before a game.
It was incredible to watch someone perform such a large motion, and those abilities most likely aided his torque and response time, as well as providing ideal practice for contorting his body through traffic.
Hopefully, Wemby’s drive to maximize his potential as a basketball player includes more dabbling in other sports. There is a lot of value in learning about diverse sports’ ideas and applying them to one’s own. Here is one example. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra sought advice from football instructor Chip Kelly in Oregon to improve Miami’s offense in 2011. The principles, combined with outstanding players who executed them, helped the Heat win back-to-back championships.
I’m curious what kind of outside-the-box thinking Wembanyama will bring to the Spurs in 2025–26.
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