Wemby Hyped as 'Shaq 2.0' by NBA GM Ahead of Finals vs. Knicks 'He's Our Nightmare'

Victor Wembanyama is nicknamed "The Alien" because of his unique size and how he is able to use it on the basketball court, but one NBA general manager has a different way of describing the San Antonio Spurs superstar.

Speaking to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, the GM called Wembanyama "Shaq 2.0" and noted "he's our nightmare" because he is an evolution of what Shaquille O'Neal brought to the NBA when he entered the league.

"Of course people are going to compare him to Shaq but he's actually Shaq 2.0," the rival GM said. "Because he takes care of his body and plays a modern game, shoots the 3 and can make free throws. Yeah, he's our nightmare."

There weren't a lot of concerns or criticisms about Wembanyama leading up to the 2023 NBA Draft. B/R's Jonathan Wasserman noted in his scouting report that the league had "never seen a 7'5" player with Wembanyama's skill set for self-creation, shot-making and passing."

Just three years into his career, Wembanyama has proven that to be correct. He is an efficient scorer who can shoot from three, handles the ball and is a Space Jam-level Monstar on the defensive end of the floor.

Also like O'Neal, Wembanyama has reached the NBA Finals in his third season. Shaq led the Orlando Magic to the Finals during the 1994-95 season, but they were swept by the Houston Rockets in the series.

There are other parallels between the two in their third seasons. O'Neal finished second in MVP voting and was a second-team All-NBA selection in 1994-95. Wembanyama was third in MVP voting and made the All-NBA first team this season.

Wembanyama will be hoping for a different outcome in the Finals than O'Neal had as he leads the Spurs in their series against the New York Knicks. At just 22 years old, he has a chance to become the second-youngest NBA Finals MVP in history.

Magic Johnson won the award as a 20-year-old for the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1979-80 season.

Wembanyama will lead the Spurs into Game 1 of the Finals against the Knicks at Frost Bank Center on Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. ET.