Suns' Kevin Durant Rejects Victor Wembanyama Comparisons: 'He's His Own Player'

After the best game of Victor Wembanyama's still-young career in the San Antonio Spurs' 132-121 win over the Phoenix Suns on Thursday, Suns forward Kevin Durant got asked about comparisons between the style of play between himself and the rookie phenom.

Durant responded by dismissing the notion, telling reporters Wembanyama "is his own player" and will "carve out his own lane" in the NBA.

The Spurs beat the Suns for the second time in three days. Wembanyama had 38 points on 15-of-26 shooting and 10 rebounds in 34 minutes. He scored 10 points during San Antonio's 12-0 run that started with 4:21 remaining and the score tied at 116 in the fourth quarter.

Leading up to the 2023 NBA draft, many analysts tried to make comparisons between Wembanyama's skill set and previous superstar players.

B/R's NBA staff broke things down by individual skill sets, with Durant being the comparison in half-court handle:

"Even the most skilled extremely-tall-person ball-handlers have an air of vulnerability. Their dribbles travel too high. Their control of the rock loosens outside a straight line. They are limited when nudged out of transition, or when their first step gets cut off. They need to throw their weight around when working in closed quarters.

"Much like Durant, Wembanyama is more of a tactician. He may have the strides of Giannis Antetokounmpo, but the surgical probes, controlled footwork and crafty angles are KD-esque."

The physical comparisons between the two are fairly obvious. They are both very tall and skinny with long limbs that make it difficult for opponents to contest their shot even they the defensive positioning is good.

But there's never been a player at Wembanyama's size (7'4" with an eight-foot wingspan) who can move like he does with the ability to shoot outside of the paint and play elite defense.

Through the first five games of his career, Wembanyama is well ahead of where Durant was in his rookie season. The 13-time All-Star averaged 22.6 points per game on 40.8 percent shooting (34.4 percent from three-point range) and 5.4 rebounds in his first five games.

Wembanyama is averaging 20.6 points on 50.0 percent shooting (32.0 percent from behind the arc), 8.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game so far this season.

Durant has a 17-year body of work that we can judge him by, plus what he adds to it going forward. He's well-established as one of the greatest players in NBA history.

There's a long road ahead before Wembanyama gets to that level, but the initial returns suggest he's worth all of the hype put on him before he was drafted.