Reacting to Wembanyama Vs. Holmgren III | The Mismatch | The Ringer

The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor and Chris Vernon talk about the third time the Thunder faced the Spurs this season, with incredible performances by both Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren.
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[@fromlongdistance]

We don't even talk about how Chet is 2 years older than Wemby anymore. Wemby made it so that it doesn't matter

[@mwebb1525]

We don’t even talk about how Chet is coming off a season ending injury which few players have ever come back from. He also went an entire year without playing basketball

[@MichaelAruba]

@@mwebb1525Kind of. At a certain point last year, he started practicing with the team. So Chet had a whole year to get used to NBA travel and schedule, build off court chemistry, learn all their plays and schemes and part of a year to actually put that into practice and build on court chemistry.

[@hunterzolomon1303]

Bro u can say wemby is better than chet without insinuaring chet is not playing great 😂😂😂

[@craigcreamer4123]

@@MichaelArubaChet is coming back from a Injury that has taken 7 footers out of the league their feet are the most vulnerable to injury. Just wait Chet might not have the luxury of being 7’5 with a 8’0 wing span like Wemby but dude is going to be a MVP and win lots of championships with the Thunder!

[@MichaelAruba]

@@craigcreamer4123 MVP is crazy unless Shai leaves lol but I'm not taking anything away from him. But its not like he was sitting on his ass for a year then came and balled out. He was training and learning the NBA for an entire year. That counts for something. Still fantastic player though.

[@kitwatson6035]

I'm glad people are still acknowledging how great Chet has been. I'm personally 100% on Wemby winning ROTY, but that shouldn't take away from how incredibly exciting Chet has been. The growth from Wemby has been mind-blowing.

[@FreeBandz658]

Yeah Wemby was hyped up as a generational talent whereas none of Banchero, Chet or Jabari were. That was seen as a draft with 3 good players. Chet has done great he was leading the race for 70% of the season. And he’s playing great basketball with the maturity of a vet. ROTY is tied up now it was going to be incredibly difficult for Chet regardless because he was up against the PR machine, when the NBA account is showing bias you know what it is. But glad people are still giving chet his flowers

[@bigguap30]

@@FreeBandz658 dude wembys gonna win roty because he’s legitimately the better individual player not cuz of pr lmao. Also chet really only lead the roty race in November when sochan was pg but since the start of 2024 wembys been the clear favorite

[@Rooski245]

⁠@@FreeBandz658we aren’t even through 70% of the season goofy. Wemby is just better. Anyone without two eyes and brain can see that. If you swap spots with them, Thunder are the favorites to win the chip. Stop crying and making excuses.

[@FreeBandz658]

@@Rooski245 i knew Americans were dumb but since engaging in nba discourse I realise I underestimated just how dumb you are. 70% of the season. That means 70% of fhe season as of when that comment was written you bozo.

[@eddydesir7702]

​@@FreeBandz65870% of the season?😂 Chet only had a case for the 1st 2 months when Wemby was shooting like 40%. Since the beginning of December when the Spurs moved Wemby to center and actually started a PG wemby took control of the race. hes been the much better player by a mile😂. You saying "its tied now" is major cope😂 you've drank so much Chet koolaid that you've gaslit yourself into thinking the ROTY race is even close at this point😂

[@Von199X]

Wemby is must watch TV , You always anticipate what his stat gonna end up in the end of the game

[@bluudhound1756]

How does Verno look 13 and 38 at the same time

[@nicmumford3188]

Too accurate 😂

[@james91096]

Dude has lesbian genetics

[@TpolTime]

He’s like a mix of Peter Pan and Santa Claus

[@blablablaa14]

He hasn't evolved his clothing style since he was 13 that's why

[@OEx25]

NBA is in excellent hands

[@GIOVANNITH3G35FAN]

Wemby inverted 'Dad blocks" in the NBA now with how he is making these players look like little kids when he blocks them lol

[@michaelcoco3913]

It really feels like the first few years of KD, when he was doing insane scoring stuff during Lebron's ascension, Chet could be the atypical Center of the next decade, but this french LBJ has arrived in a sense... both guys needed that it defined the league through the 2010s.

[@OmnipotentSpud]

Hoops needed this. The Bron era has been too damn chummy.

[@thebrunostrange]

What do you mean "chet is being built properly around"? No disrespect to Chet, but OKC is built around MVP candidate SGA, chet is one of those pieces

[@luigidabest4743]

chet is gonna be like the porzingis of okc. porzingis is a complimentary piece to tatum and brown while being the 3rd option while chet is gonna be playing a similar role (stretch big who can defend the rim) to jdub and sga.

[@Peroriperora]

@@luigidabest4743totally

[@ogdynasie7341]

@@luigidabest4743not really fair comparison as Chet is arguably already at the same level as Kp if Chet constantly improves he could easily be a superstar not another fringe all star like kp

[@luigidabest4743]

@@ogdynasie7341 he's not gonna be a super star while playing with sga and jdub. he's not gonna get a lot of touches that way. i truly believe the 2nd best player on the thunder is jdub and will continue to be better as he develops cause he is amazing

[@simonanderson4858]

@@luigidabest4743 Chet's game is very scalable. He does a tonne of work off ball, screening, rolling and cutting, and he spaces the floor. Add in his elite defence and he's uniquely equipped to be a hyper impactful 3rd option. He'll be closer to KG on the '08 Celtics than KP on the Celtics now.

[@breakfastenjoyer]

Big Vic aka the French Prince is the ROTY

[@issey1456]

yeah, he is the French Prince of Ball in Air . Cute and confident and cheeky.

[@jrev8089]

This might be like Wilt vs Russell. Wilt had the physical gifts, but Russell the competitiveness/rings. I think Wemby will win this battle though

[@simonanderson4858]

Chet was the first to 100 blocks and 100 3s. Wemby will be the first to 200 blocks and 100 3s.

[@Irfanhill]

This rivalry was nurtured in international youth competition and I hope it is prolonged. Think about it: this summer, Wemby will be very jealous of Chet for making the playoffs while he is at the bottom of the NBA, then Chet is going to be very jealous of Wemby for playing in the Olympics, hopefully as late as possible (at least in Paris and not only in Lille!). When they will meet again they will act out on their jealousy towards the other. It's a great, basketball rivality. I'm almost sure there is no bad feeling off the court, Wemby being such an intelligent young man and a class act, but they see each other as rivals. Good for us!

[@tomek6132]

Chet is also not the man on his team. He’s not Wemby good, but he’s good enough to be in the conversation if he were on a bad team.

[@majorwakanda8858]

I don’t think Chet does what wemby does getting triple teamed as the number 1 option. Chet is the #3 option on OKC this year.

[@tomek6132]

@@majorwakanda8858 is Russ better than KD because of his MVP season?

[@hashbrown4278]

Conversation for what?

[@gms9779]

Jordan skills with Kareem height equals Wembayama..

[@coopertodd28]

Reach

[@NBAinVA]

Off topic, does anyone else have the same issues with NBA league pass that I do? The back end links never work and I’m constantly having issues trying to watch games. Last night, I wasn’t able to watch any games. I tried on multiple devices.

[@markbantz9699]

A big difference is Whemby is way more athletic! You see him run the floor?!

[@aron.gortman]

He looks like Gumby.

[@hashbrown4278]

@@aron.gortmanno he’s pretty fast

[@ramonpunsalang3397]

It's gonna be Russell's Celtics vs. Wilt's '76ers for the 21st century.

[@HamptonGuitars]

You have to hope that San Antonio will give him a better roster than the sixers ever did for Wilt. Cheapest owner in the league.

[@RasLion]

yeah we can't believe both are rookie cause one of them ain't

[@HamptonGuitars]

Chet never played last year, how is he NOT a rookie?

[@tuckerjamm]

Can Chris try to pronounce Wembanyama correctly? It's not Wembayama/Wembyama. Be better than Reggie Miller.

[@spursfan1775]

...wemby has missed 6 games...he would of had 100 threes and over 200 blocks by now...chet has played every game...

[@80teg]

At this point, Gobert's legacy is diminished by another DPOY. 4 DPOYs puts him in a category he so clearly doesnt belong in -- and anyone who saw him play will explain that to anyone who didnt.

[@ThunderTalk]

wemby was playing pro while chet was in a boot last year...

[@jhnsb]

So lol

[@alexcastvix8823]

Since foreign players began to win individuals, Americans seem to work hard to diminish their accomplishments. Few year ago, playing in an european domestic league was seen as less relevant experience than playing in NCAA (see the disrespect for Luka in 2018 who was a Euroleague/Spanish league MVP), now some of those same people react like if these kind of players should be out of the roy race.

[@hashbrown4278]

I don’t see why this is used as an argument. It’s not like Chet was completely cut off from his team

[@ThunderTalk]

its not the same as a normal rookie, he was mainly focused on training his body, that's the point@@hashbrown4278

[@siphillis]

I'm a Spurs fan and I still kinda want Chet to win ROTY just to see how Victor takes the news.

[@darktime7503]

Then you are not a Spurs fan or you are just sadist

[@eddydesir7702]

Which means your not a spurs fan

[@hashbrown4278]

With “fans” like you wemby will be out of s.a son

[@mindyourbuisness8104]

Why does everything have to be hyperbole? Wemby at no point looked like the best player in the world and was already basically a lock for ROY

[@aron.gortman]

They just need a black guy to be the best player in the NBA for once.

[@dropthehammer1360]

@@aron.gortmanignorant statement. Wemby’s mom is white.

[@George-jc3mt]

@@aron.gortman obsessed with race lol

[@eddydesir7702]

​@@aron.gortmanfor once?😂 almost every single year in NBA history since the 70s atleast the beat player in basketball has always been a black man😂 outside of Larry Bird, and Jokic no man since the 70s has ever been the best player in a year that wasnt black😂 Jordan, Magic Johnson, Kareem, Wilt, Shaq, Kobe, Lebron, Giannis, Curry, Embiid

[@hashbrown4278]

Yes he has not over long stretches of course. But last 5 games 25pts 12rebs 5 ast 5 blks 51% fg 43% 3pt could make an argument for best but only for a few games

[@mattnoonan6519]

Chet has played 5 more games and hasn’t missed one yet this season. I agree Victor should be ROY, but Chet making 102 threes so far this year, shooting almost 40% is pretty sick with 155 blocks. Chet also has half the turnovers that Wemby has. I think Chet had ROY until this game, but Wemby definitely looked very very good.

[@eddydesir7702]

If you thought Chet had ROTY after January, your either a delusional OKC fan or dont know basketball😂 the turnovers is explainable by the usage rate. Chet does not have to endure doubles and triples, he isnt even the 2nd option on the team. His ROTY case is being carried by his MVP and MIP teammates😂

[@alexcastvix8823]

ROY discussion were credible only while Wemby played as 4 with Sochan as PG, Wemby put more number but the efficiency gap was wide enough to considerate both for ROY. Since he starts as 5 with Tre as PG (since mid-December), efficiency and numbers improved. In my opinion, people saying only now they are changing their mind in favor of Wemby is already a wild statement.

[@mattnoonan6519]

@@eddydesir7702 OKC was slotted to win 43.5 games this year. Chet is a MASSIVE reason why they’re top 5 in defense and top 5 in offense. He changed everything for this team. So to say Chet’s case is being carried by Shai and Dub when he himself against the Warriors hit a game tying 3 buzzer beater against the Warriors and then in another game hit 3 free throws at the end of regulation to send it to OT to eventually win, means something. He’s coming up big in meaningful games. He has a case a strong case, and to dismiss him is just Wemby colored glasses.

[@eddydesir7702]

@@mattnoonan6519 the ROTY race ended a month ago. the other night was the nail in the coffin. Team winning does not affect the ROTY race, individual talent and stats do.

[@hashbrown4278]

Wemby started running away with roty back in last December. Since then it hasn’t been close

[@jacksonjones2220]

“In this league” and “in this battle” earned a thumbs down. The ringer is so much better than this punditry

[@Convisis]

Max Straus looked like THE BEST PLAYER IN THE WORLD in the win over the Mavs the other night 😂 I mean come on, I’m a lifelong Spurs fan and there’s no way Vic ever looks like the best player in the world.

[@360carter3]

Then you not a Spurs fan then, Simple.

[@hashbrown4278]

Then you’re not really a spurs fan and haven’t been paying attention to the insane numbers wemby has been putting up

[@Convisis]

@@hashbrown4278 sorry dude, I’m entirely aware of the numbers he’s been putting up. I watch every game religiously. I am a huge VW believer. To say that I’m not a spurs fan because I don’t agree with extreme hyperbole is a bit absurd. Do I think Vic will be the best player in the world? Probably, yes, and I dearly hope so. Did I think he looked like it against OKC when there’s people like Jokic, Shai, Luka etc in the league? No I did not, nor has he at any point. Yet.

[@aron.gortman]

Neither of them will ever touch Jokic.

[@christopheb.6121]

Jokic is 29,Victor 20. We'll see in 9years what Victor has achieved.

[@classthoreau3541]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/eHStqnqva6Z5gNEsi=myHNn48unYWNCn85&t=9

[@eddydesir7702]

They will because Jokic will always be a better offensive player, but the defensive gap between them and Jokic is enormous

[@hashbrown4278]

They both already better then jokic defensively

[@aron.gortman]

@@hashbrown4278 lmao not even close.