The roar of the crowd inside the Arena Accor was deafening. The music was playing and fans shouted for joy. Not for a rock concert, but for a basketball game.
The recent NBA raid in Paris was not just a game; It was a cultural phenomenon, a testimony of the increasingly global reach of the League and the emergence of a new generation of European superstars.
In the heart of this phenomenon is Victor Wembanyama, the French star whose presence is electrifying fans and developers of disconcerting games, such as 2K, equally.
He embodies a seismic change in the NBA landscape. A change that has seen only European talent participate, but dominates the best basketball league in the world.
“I don't think you have to look far beyond the last six MVP,” said David Brody, vice president of NBA global associations, speaking with Mail Sport.
'All are born outside the United States. You have Giannis (Antetokounmpo), you have (Nikola) Jokic, you have (Joel) Embiid: the biggest stars, the Pinnacle Award in our game, the last six years have been for someone outside the United States. '
Victory Wembanyama has become the last European talent to take care of the NBA
The San Antonio Spurs star has become a global phenomenon after shining on the court
The 21 -year -old, who is in 7'4 “, has a set of features that are rarely seen in sport
This is not a passing trend; It is a fundamental realignment of the basketball universe. European players not only fill the points on the list; They are leading the load, establishing records and redefining the game itself.
Brody points out the commitment of the social networks of the League as an additional evidence of this global increase, with particular interest in Wembanyama in the last year.
He explained: 'I'm not sure if you saw, yesterday we have made an ad. Victor is now the second most watched player on our social networks this year.
'Then, you know, we have some stars established as I just arrived, but also someone like Victor, who is not even during his second season and he is already number two, behind LeBron James, in terms of consumption of videos of our fans on our platform. So I think the international scope is here, and will only continue to grow as we advance in the future.
Wembanyama's impact is so deep that it is creating waves beyond the court, even reaching the world of video games.
Ronnie 2K, the public face of the NBA 2K franchise, revealed the challenges of Wembanyama's unique skills gifts. “I don't know how you design it in the game,” he confessed.
We were talking about that before. We do not have constructions that are seven feet five, which can drive and shoot. We used to do it in my career, and we thought: 'That is not authentic'. And we take it out, and now it is strangely authentic, because he is very good. '
The dilemma, explained Ronnie 2K, is how to translate the almost another world of Wembanyama's skills into a balanced and attractive game experience.
Wembanyama helped take the San Antonio Spurs to a victory over the Indiana Pacers in Paris
The NBA Chief, Dave Brody, spoke of the immense impact that Wembanyama has had in the League
'We have not put it again, you know, and it's scary, because people are very competitive that play our game and want to play the best construction.
'And I mean, how do you not build a boy like Wendy if he is, you know, your prototype? It is size, it has skill. So we have a pending thing that we will have to think and how we develop in terms of how it is built in the game.
Ronnie 2K's admiration for Wembanyama's talent is clear. He compared his defensive presence with a main Yao Ming, while recognizing the upper range and the management of the French ball.
'He is a great defensive player. It is very difficult to score against him. A kind of remembers also how to play Prime Yao Ming too.
'Similar body styles, obviously, Wemby has a slightly more range and probably a little better ball handling skills, which is crazy. Yao Ming is one of the best big men who have played our game. Then his legacy, you know, if he remains healthy and continues to evolve … '
He emphasized the importance of Wembanyama's development experience. 'I was also saying, as, in the middle of the year, experience is what will do it much better.
'As if he were learning the nuance of how to get to the basket and score at this level. And I mean, there is much to get excited about him. The challenge for game developers, he reiterated, is to capture Wembanyama's essence without breaking the delicate balance of the game.
'We are going to have to think about how we build that game around its skill set without making it look completely arcade. We do not do it, we do not want it to be so unrealistic, just because it is so, so good. '
The unique French skills set has also led games developers to rethink their models
The second year student of the Spurs is averaging 24.3 points per game for the Greg Popovich team
The recent NBA trip to Paris stressed the commitment of the League with global expansion. Brody described the atmosphere in the Arena Accor as electric.
'For us, our mission is to inspire and connect people through the basketball game everywhere. We have played more than 210 global games, really, in each region or corner of the world. Our games are transmitted in more than 50 languages and more than 200 countries and territories.
He shared a personal anecdote of the Paris game that highlighted the unifying power of basketball. 'For me, there was a moment the other night that I think symbolized the basketball capacity to unite different cultures and people.
'I don't know if you saw Victor take the microphone before the game to talk to the audience in its sand. I did not speak French, so I did not know what I was saying, but I felt and knew exactly what I was saying, as only the camaraderie and the passion that was in the building.
The game, he said, was the most watched in France, a testimony of the growing passion for basketball worldwide.
'Simply talks about how basketball is this universal language that brings together people. So, for us, it is our mission. And how many words are how we are singularly focused on gathering people around the world through the basketball game.
Heaven is the limit for French, since the Spurs appear in a possible playing place
The emergence of European stars such as Wembanyama, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid is not just a fleeting moment; It shows a fundamental change in the identity of the NBA during the last decade.
It is a testimony of the globalization of the game, the power of sport to transcend borders and cultures, and the dawn of a new era in basketball, an era in which European talent is not only to compete, but define the future of the game.
And at the forefront of this movement is Victor Wembanyama, a player so unique that he is rewriting the rules book, both on the court and in the digital world.
Its presence is a symbol of the global aspirations of the NBA, a lighthouse of what is possible when talent and passion converge in the world stage. The world is looking, and the future of basketball, apparently, is being written in multiple languages.