It's still difficult to be surprised by the exploits of Victor Wembanyama, a comet placed on the trajectory of a legendary career. This Wednesday, November 4, 2026, the French basketball player nevertheless managed to widen the eyes of the entire planet after his match against Dallas. The San Antonio Spurs star blackened the statistics sheet in proportions that are difficult to imagine: 52 points on 16/28 shooting, 24 rebounds, and eight blocks. All with the 112-111 victory as a bonus, thanks to a crucial free throw a few seconds from the end of the match. Its figures place the alien "Wemby" in a new dimension.
Signing 50 points and 20 rebounds is already the prerogative of a limited number of players, only four in the 2000s (Shaquille O'Neal in 2000, Chris Webber in 2001, Anthony Davis in 2016, and Luka Doncic in 2022). At the San Antonio Spurs, a franchise which nevertheless had in its ranks players like Tim Duncan, considered one of the best interior players of all time, this is simply unprecedented. Add to this the defensive statistical impact that Victor Wembanyama experienced on Wednesday and we then have to delve a little deeper into the archives to find traces of such a performance.
Wembanyama became the first player to sign at least 50 points, 20 rebounds and 5 blocks since Bob McAdoo more than half a century earlier, on February 22, 1974. McAdoo was until then the only one to have achieved this since the NBA officially counted blocks, starting with the 1973-1974 season. Impressively dissuasive and even frankly sickening as he countered three Dallas players on the same possession in just 13 seconds, the Frenchman showed himself at times to be simply unplayable.
âI wish I could find something to say to make myself seem intelligent, but look what he does,â was stunned former player Charles Barkley, who became a consultant for ESPN and yet is usually never short of formulas. "It's absurd. It's just extraordinary." âItâs even unfair.â concluded Barkley regarding the first period of Victor Wembanyama, the first player to achieve 25 points, 15 rebounds, five blocks in one period in the history of the league.
Faced with these gargantuan figures, only one iconic figure still seems worthy of comparison. Wilt Chamberlain, the man with 100 points scored in a basketball game, is the player with all the most staggering statistics. Games with 50 points and 20 rebounds, he has 104 in his career, when no other player has signed more than eight. But with the exception of McAdoo (22 years and 150 days, 22 years and 304 days for "Wemby"), no one had achieved a feat of this kind before celebrating their 23rd birthday.
"Victor is simply Wilt. Opponents try everything to stop him, every adjustment, every possible one. It's hard to keep him off the racket." Dylan Harper, leader of the San Antonio Spurs at a press conference, November 4
Still room for improvement
The worst part of all this for the competition? Victor Wembanyama was not at his best. âI haven't been feeling well lately, I've been sick,â he said after the match. âToday, it's like I've got my legs back. It should be like that more often.â
More in rhythm and aggressive towards the basket, the outgoing NBA finalist could even have added more to the bill by being more skillful at three points (only 1/8). âI can still do more,â he proclaimed. âMy shots werenât going in and that forced me to adopt an exhausting style of play. Iâm capable of it, the proof is there (tonight). But I can be much better when my shots go in.â
True to himself, Victor Wembanyama is not satisfied, especially since his performance was necessary to ensure his franchise a sixth consecutive victory after a sluggish start to the season. Voted best player in the Western Conference last week, the Spurs player now wants to win this award âevery weekâ.
And the best is perhaps yet to come with such releases. No player had ever managed to sign a statistical line at 50 points and 20 rebounds in less than 42 minutes played, while Victor Wembanyama is still in training, with "only" 34 minutes spent on the floor on Wednesday.
