{"id":6361,"date":"2022-10-22T02:53:35","date_gmt":"2022-10-22T02:53:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/jon-rahm-roars-into-share-of-lead-at-cj-cup-with-62\/"},"modified":"2022-10-22T02:53:35","modified_gmt":"2022-10-22T02:53:35","slug":"jon-rahm-roars-into-share-of-lead-at-cj-cup-with-62","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=6361","title":{"rendered":"Jon Rahm roars into share of lead at CJ Cup with 62"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>\nPARIS: Victor Wembanyama scored his team\u2019s first points after just 54 seconds, then pumped his arms when he assisted on the last score of Friday night\u2019s game with a pass that traveled nearly the length of the court.<\/p>\n<p>\n\u201cWembamania\u201d is sweeping France and everyone is trying to get a look at the 18-year-old prodigy widely expected to become an NBA star.<\/p>\n<p>\nEven 85-year-old former Prime Minister Lionel Jospin called the club\u2019s president to ask for a ticket. The Socialist Party politician watched as Wembanyama scored 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting for Paris-based Metropolitans 92 in a 113-88 win against Blois. He went 2 for 3 from 3-point range and had seven rebounds and five blocks.<\/p>\n<p>\nGrinning after a slick alley-oop and dunk late in the game, the 7-foot-3 Wembanyama then drew the roar of the night when he made a deep 3. Those few minutes of effortless-looking yet ruthless play were worth the entrance fee for the crowd of roughly 4,000.<\/p>\n<p>\nHe even did a little improvised coaching on court, tapping his head as if to say \u201cthink\u201d to a teammate. Before the game started, he twice tapped the undersoles of his giant shoes.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align:center\">\n<figure class=\"image\" style=\"display:inline-block\">\n<figcaption>\nMetropolitan 92&#8217;s Victor Wembanyama (R) in action with with Blois&#8217; Tyren Johnson during their French Elite basketball match in Levallois-Perret, outside Paris, on Oct. 21, 2021. (AFP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>\nWembanyama drew a huge cheer when he sprinted like an Olympian \u2014 his angular running style making his arms look like pistons \u2014 to get back and block a shot near the end of the first quarter.<\/p>\n<p>\nNBA great LeBron James described Wembanyama\u2019s athleticism by saying \u201cno one has ever seen anyone as tall as he is but as fluid.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\nWembanyama did let frustration get to him at times on Friday, dropping his head when he missed one block. He looked annoyed with the officials \u2014 raising his hands as if to say, \u201cOh, come on!\u201d \u2014 when a Blois player appeared to trip him.<\/p>\n<p>\nHe had only five points in the first half, without trying a 3, but made five blocks. After hitting a 3-pointer 40 seconds into the third quarter, he then launched himself into the air to catch a pass and throw the ball off-balance back to captain Lahaou Konate, clenching his fist when Konate\u2019s shot went in.<\/p>\n<p>\nHe jumped up from his seat and slapped a towel in appreciation when another teammate made a deep 3-pointer in the third period, before he turned entertainer again.<\/p>\n<p>\nThe crowd was small compared to what awaits Wembanyama in the NBA. When his name was read as part of the starting five, huge cheers broke out around the compact arena.<\/p>\n<p>\nHe is considered the likely top pick in the 2023 NBA draft and is a near-certainty to be the first top-five draft pick from France.<\/p>\n<p>\nHe\u2019ll be 19 1\/2 years old \u2014 almost exactly the same age soccer star Kylian Mbappe was when he starred for France in its 2018 World Cup win. Both prodigies grew up in the suburbs of Paris, where Wembanyama could take the baton from judo great Teddy Riner as France\u2019s new Olympic star at the 2024 Games.<\/p>\n<p>\nThe hype surrounding Wembanyama is growing and national news channel France 2 aired a report on him after his jaw-dropping performances in two exhibition games in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n<p>\nMetropolitans president Alain Weisz, who launched four-time NBA champion Tony Parker\u2019s international career with France, said tickets for Friday\u2019s game were made available 10 days ago and sold out in two hours. The game at Le Mans last Saturday \u2014 Wembanyama\u2019s first after his Las Vegas bonanza \u2014 saw that modest club sell all 6,000 tickets for the first time.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align:center\">\n<figure class=\"image\" style=\"display:inline-block\">\n<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" height=\"799\" src=\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/sites\/default\/files\/userimages\/20\/wemby3.jpg\" width=\"1200\"\/><figcaption>\nMetropolitan 92&#8217;s Victor Wembanyama (R) in action with with Blois&#8217; Tyren Johnson during their French Elite basketball match in Levallois-Perret, outside Paris, on Oct. 21, 2021. (AFP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n\u201cWhat the lad\u2019s doing is unheard of,\u201d Weisz told France Info radio. \u201cIt\u2019s not just young people here or rappers who identity with Victor. Even Lionel Jospin called me for a ticket. What happened in the United States created an interest level what was unimaginable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\nJospin served as France\u2019s prime minister from 1997 to 2002.<\/p>\n<p>\nThe club has already sold twice as many jerseys as last season in one month of competition \u2014 85 percent with Wembanyama\u2019s name. An average of six scouts come to each game and one from the Sacramento Kings even spent two days watching him train before attending the Le Mans game.<\/p>\n<p>\n\u201cVictor\u2019s determination is extraordinary,\u201d Weisz said. \u201cHe reminds me a lot of Tony Parker.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\nWembanyama looks like the ultimate perfectionist.<\/p>\n<p>\nOne hour before Friday\u2019s game, he muttered in annoyance at himself for missing a couple of close-range shots during warmups.<\/p>\n<p>\nWemby, as he is already affectionately called, was lethal in Las Vegas. He finished two exhibition games with 73 points, nine 3-pointers, 15 rebounds and nine blocked shots and an army of fans dreaming of what he might do in the NBA.<\/p>\n<p>\nHe\u2019s coached at Metropolitans 92 by Vincent Collet \u2014 France\u2019s longtime national team coach who led the team to a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics.<\/p>\n<p>\n<strong>Family affair<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\nFather Felix Wembanyama was a triple jumper. Victor\u2019s mother, Elodie de Fautereau, played pro basketball and also coached.<\/p>\n<p>\nIt was hard to ignore basketball growing up: Sister Eve \u2014 who is 20 \u2014 is a pro with Monaco in the second-tier LF2 league.<\/p>\n<p>\nYounger brother Oscar is 15, won a national junior title with Nanterre and, just like his brother, then moved to l\u2019ASVEL \u2014 which is owned by Parker.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/node\/2185766\/sport\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>PARIS: Victor Wembanyama scored his team\u2019s first points after just 54 seconds, then pumped his arms&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sport"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v21.0 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - 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