"It's very possible that he'll be the face of basketball. Not just NBA basketball, but world basketball," said Pacers coach Rick Carlisle.

Victor Wembanyama was ready to become the world’s tallest kickboxer on Wednesday night.

The story, as Buford tells it, goes like this: Claudio Crippa, an international scout for the Spurs, proposed going to see a youth game before checking out Doumbouya. Buford saw Wembanyama play for the first time that day. And the seeds for the Spurs’ new master plan were immediately planted.