Wembymania: What Paris feels like when Victor Wembanyama is in town

PARIS — It takes a lot to turn heads during Paris Fashion Week, but the homecoming of an NBA phenom did just that in the French capital.

The 21-year-old San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama stirred a media frenzy and had fans of all ages screaming at the sight of him in his return to his home city this week for the first time since winning Olympic silver last summer.

The excitement around his NBA doubleheader against the Indiana Pacers was clear. Tickets to both games sold out within 24 hours, with 15,935 fans in attendance for the first game on Thursday, which the Spurs won thanks to Wembanyama — who else? — who played a starring role. The second game is Saturday.

Approaching the Accor Arena, there was no doubt who people were there to see. Fans queued at the merchandise trucks to get their piece of memorabilia from Wembanyama’s first NBA game in France. A replica of his Spurs jersey was the most popular outfit of choice on game day, but some opted for the blue of France.

Cameras cut to the 7-foot-4 (224cm) center during the pre-game performance of the French national anthem and it was the first of many times the crowd rejoiced in seeing his face on the screen. As the Spurs were cruising to a win, he was met with ‘MVP’ chants when he went to the bench with over five minutes remaining during his game-high 30-point performance.

The next day, Wembanyama’s self-lob off the glass before a dunk flashed across L’Equipe TV, a French broadcaster, with commentators giving an appropriate “ooh la la.”

As Londoner Grant Igbokwe, 27, told The Athletic: “For everyone that doesn’t live in the United States, it is sort of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; it’s an amazing experience to see Wemby up close. It’s the Wemby experience, it’s Wembymania.”

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In this bustling capital, sometimes it’s hard to keep pace with the constant coming and goings. But with huge posters of him dotted around the city, there is no mistaking that the man the people here simply call ‘Wemby’ has come home.

The Spurs pop-up shop on Rue des Francs-Bourgeois, between the 3rd and 4th arrondissements, had ‘Wembanyama #1’ jerseys for $120 (€115), a must-have for many shoppers. A Spurs T-shirt with his name on the back and a hoodie with the design of his new court in his old neighbourhood of Le Chesnay, in the western suburbs of Paris, was also being sold.

A short walk away, at the Carreau du Temple, a covered market built in the 19th century, is the ‘NBA House,’ which is filled with activities for fans. It was here that Brian Bosche, a 34-year-old Denver sports fan, could be found reflecting on Thursday’s game — his third straight year going to the Paris games.

“The fanfare around it this year is incredible compared to the last couple of years,” he told The Athletic. “The fans last night (Thursday) loved the Spurs and Wemby more than most home fans (in the U.S. love their team). The excitement because they only get two NBA games a year (is huge). The fact there is such limited quantity of NBA here and they love Wemby so much, it was like a playoff game (atmosphere).”

Paris first hosted an NBA regular-season game in 2020, but this is the first time the city has hosted two NBA games in the same season.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver told the media before Thursday’s game that for basketball in Europe to grow commercially it needed to connect with those who weren’t diehard fans. Wembamyama, the reigning NBA Rookie of the Year, is helping with that: only four NBA players sell more jerseys than Wembanyama globally.

Watching Wembanyama live is certainly a show that should not be missed. But despite his stardom, “I think he loves to engage with fans,” said Silver on Thursday. After all, this is a 21-year-old who played chess against locals in Washington Square Park days after a 40-point game on Christmas Day against the New York Knicks.

While in Paris, Wembanyama has chosen to focus on engaging with French media to help connect with the French audience. His three exclusive interviews were all with French companies, including Picsou Magazine — a children’s magazine he used to read when he was younger.

This week, he’s arranged a shopping trip and a dinner for his San Antonio Spurs teammates and opened outdoor courts in Le Chesnay (both on Monday), made appearances at Paris Fashion Week (Tuesday), and watched Paris Saint-Germain take on Manchester City in the Champions League, European soccer’s premier cup competition (Wednesday).

Paris welcomes some of the world’s biggest stars year-round. Yet, no one is adored quite like the Spurs center. This week, Paris has been Wemby’s city.

(Top photo: Thomas Samson/AFP)