Victor Wembanyama already has the NBA spotlight
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Victor Wembanyama signs autographs after the game against the G League Ignite. Photo: Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images
The NBA announced Thursday it will stream all of French star Victor Wembanyama's upcoming regular season and playoff games, promoting a potential future NBA star well ahead of his debut.
Why it matters: The move will allow basketball fans to easily watch Wembanyama, who is considered one of the best NBA Draft prospects ever and the presumptive No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft.
How to watch Victor Wembanyama's games
Details: The NBA announced Thursday that it will stream all the games of Wembanyama's team, Boulogne-Levallois Metropolitans 92, on the NBA app beginning Saturday, Oct. 29.
- Games will be available for free, according to the league's press release.
- The NBA will feature other major events from the French league, LNB Betclic ELITE. This includes league cup games and an All-Star Game in December.
- This is the first non-NBA league to have its game live-streamed on the app.
Victor Wembanyama: What to know
State of play: The league is already finding ways to showcase Wembanyama and he hasn't even set foot on an NBA court yet.
- The French star overshadowed the end of the NBA preseason when he and fellow prospect Scoot Henderson played in Las Vegas earlier this month. Those games were broadcasted nationwide on ESPN2.
- There's also been plenty of speculation about NBA franchises tanking their way to the bottom of the standings in an effort to improve their draft odds, and have a better chance of picking Henderson or Wembanyama in next year's draft.
Promotion of future stars
The big picture: The promotion of potential sports stars is all the rage right now, especially as NIL deals become more common among college and high school athletes.
- For example, Bronny James and Arch Manning — who are both still in high school — are projected to have a higher market value than any current college athletes right now, according to a list of NIL valuations.
Go deeper: Meet Victor Wembanyama, the top prize of next year's NBA draft
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to state that all Boulogne-Levallois Metropolitans 92 games will be streamed.
