San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama speaks on playing on one of the NBA's biggest stages ahead of his team's first matchup of the season against the New York Knicks.
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00:00 What's it like being in this building shooting on the sport so far?
00:04 Yeah, pretty incredible.
00:06 You know, it's not as big as I expected, but still the vibe is here.
00:10 What are your expectations for tonight?
00:12 You're proud and just playing in this environment.
00:16 A tough game, you know, physical and yeah, you know, passionate fans.
00:22 Eighth game into your NBA career.
00:24 Has anything surprised you?
00:26 Has it lived up to what you expected?
00:29 Yeah, I've had surprises, of course.
00:31 But I'd say mostly it's what I expected, you know,
00:35 and the players are just the best in the world.
00:38 And it's incredible being surrounded by such talent.
00:41 Victor, hello. You made your first NBA appearance.
00:44 How did you get the welcome as the number one draft pick?
00:48 It was gradual.
00:50 I was with this group for months before the first games,
00:54 and especially on friendly matches.
00:56 It was gradual, but everyone welcomed me very well.
01:00 A lot of the great players, you know, Michael Jordans, LeBron James,
01:03 they love coming here.
01:05 They put up big performances here.
01:07 What do you know about the history of the Garden?
01:10 Does it mean anything extra for you playing here?
01:12 Of course, yeah, it does.
01:14 You know, I've heard from so many people that this is the best basketball,
01:20 you know, gym in the world.
01:22 And I'm just, you know, I'm eager to find out.
01:25 I'm definitely expecting some good team and individual performances here, yeah.
01:33 Did you meet Tom Brady?
01:35 Yes.
01:36 What went into that?
01:39 Very, you know, I really like the vibe from him, very humble and interesting,
01:44 but also interested in knowing people.
01:47 You know, it really feels good to see people, you know, successful,
01:51 but happy people, you know.
01:54 It looks like he's just happy with the life he's got
01:57 and just makes all the people around happy.
02:00 Do you know much about American football?
02:02 A little bit, yeah, of course, more and more, but I know Tom Brady for sure.
02:05 And did he approach you or did you approach him?
02:07 No, so neither.
02:09 I'd say it's a common person we know that we pretty much run into each other.
02:16 [Speaking French]
02:20 [Speaking French]
02:37 [Speaking French]
02:39 [Speaking French]
02:46 [Speaking French]
03:06 What do you make of the opponent tonight, the Knicks?
03:09 Are you probably going to go up against Mitchell Robinson?
03:11 What do you think of their matchup?
03:14 I don't know.
03:16 Our center, Zach, is probably going to go against Mitchell Robinson.
03:19 But, yeah, you know, lots of physical players
03:22 and great talent over there, especially defensively.
03:26 So, yeah, it's going to be an interesting game, a good trial for us.
03:32 When you hear people say you're a unicorn, what do you think about that?
03:38 I mean, that nickname has been used over and over,
03:42 but I'm not a real big fan of it.
03:44 Just like LeBron said, everybody's been a unicorn.
03:47 But there's just one alien, right?
03:49 [Laughter]