WASHINGTON — There are a few players who probably deserve credit for changing the big man’s position in the NBA, from Dirk Nowitzki to Kevin Durant to Draymond Green. But some of the biggest names in the next wave of top prospects entering the league look a lot like Kristaps Porzingis.
Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 pick in the 2022 NBA draft, has been widely compared to Porzingis. The similarities are obvious, as they are with Victor Wembanyama, likely the top pick of the 2023 class. Both are lanky and exceptionally skilled for players over seven feet tall.
Holmgren is more recognizable now after playing Gonzaga and then the Summer League. Wembanyama, meanwhile, is set to become much more well-known when his Boulogne-Levallois Metropolitans take on the G-League Ignite in two exhibition matches in Las Vegas on Tuesday and Thursday. Both games will be broadcast on national television.
Wembanyama will face Ignite star Scoot Henderson, who is also expected to be one of the first players drafted in June. Many NBA scouts and decision-makers are expected to attend, including a contingent from Wizards.
Wembanyama was hailed by draft evaluators as a super prospect, the type of talent that only comes around once every few years. Except his specific archetype has never been seen before, as at 7ft 2in he has the agility and footwork of a wing. He glides up and down the floor effortlessly, creating shots with advanced ball-handling skill and blocking shots with impeccable length and instincts.
Porzingis was nicknamed the “Unicorn” by Durant early in his career because he was particularly unique, but there are now a few players with the same pedigree following in his footsteps.
“Dirk was a superstar and of course he made the style of play much more palatable by what he was doing and for everyone else after him. I grew up watching him, I grew up watching Pau Gasol and Kobe [Bryant]”Porzingis told NBC Sports Washington.
“No matter how tall I was, I kind of wanted to play like that and take things out of their games. Hopefully I can do the same for the next generation to come.”
Naturally, the great wizarding man noticed the next crop of unicorns. Porzingis said he first watched Wembanyama’s best moments on social media. Like most who see him play for the first time, he was amazed.
Even for Porzingis, who is 7-foot-3, Wembanyama stands out as different.
“I think [Holmgren and Wembanyama] are going to be great. Especially Victor, with his height. It’s unbelievable how tall he is,” Porzingis said.
“I think I saw him on Twitter. I heard about him because he’s French and we always follow European players. I saw him and I was like ‘okay, interesting .’ How old is he now [18]? He is incredible. If he can keep that mobility and all those skills and keep getting stronger and keep everything the same, he’ll be fine.”
Like Porzingis, Holmgren and Wembanyama are each over seven feet tall, make plays on the dribble and shoot a high volume three. Before Porzingis, it was less common to see players as big as him doing these things, but they have a chance to continue to evolve this style of play.
Porzingis says there are only a handful of big men in the NBA who post consistently and effectively. He twice named MVP Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid. There are a lot of big guys who don’t play indoors at all.
As Porzingis described it, big men must now “have the head of a playmaker”. They must run the floor, make plays for others, and shoot from three.
Porzingis may have helped advance his position, but he could also see things backtracking in the future. There could, in theory, come an athlete so physically powerful that he forces other big men to play closer to the basket.
“Of course, if there is another Shaq [O’Neal] who will dominate inside the position and then everyone else will have to adjust their game to be able to keep him. But right now it looks like it’s going in that direction with a lot of talented guys who can play from outside and post and do it all,” Porzingis said.
O’Neal weighed 325 pounds during his peak with the Lakers in the early 2000s. According to NBA.com, the league’s biggest player last season was Tacko Fall, at 311 pounds. The heaviest star would be Jokic, at 284 pounds. So O’Neal would have it by about 40 pounds. In a way, he was also faster than Jokic, despite his size.
O’Neal, however, still stands out as an anomaly, now 30 years after entering the league as the No. 1 pick in 1992. If there’s another ‘Shaq’, he may not return. Before a long time. So, for now, there may be more and more Porzingis clones entering the league and finding success. Wembanyama seems to be next.
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