Dwight Howard perfectly describes Wemby's mentality with ultimate compliment

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was known for being thoughtful and walking at his own pace. He did what he thought was right, and he was a man of focus—kind of like John Wick—everything he did was intentional. Putting his energy in the right areas was important to him, and just by doing that, reverence followed.

Those traits are interchangeable between life and basketball, and it led to a great career built on respect and accolades. San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama is going down the same path with an added twist of extraterrestrial DNA. Dwight Howard made a comparison between the two on the Rich Eisen Show, and he was spot on.

Wembanyama moves to his own beat

When Howard first brings up Kareem's name, it's in the immediate aftermath of describing Victor's thirst for more knowledge. Seeking out ways to improve his game by going to past legends like Jamal Crawford and Kevin Garnett is already special for his age, but to include spending time with monks to improve his focus is something different entirely.

Kareem may not have sought out monks, but he had a very intense focus and a strong sense of right and wrong. Those traits put him on the front lines of civil rights movements, but he never let his beliefs get in the way of his game. In fact, he worked harder, perfecting the most unstoppable move we've ever seen—a fact that remains true to this day. Nobody could touch the skyhook.

Wemby has that way about him. You marvel at the physical traits, but this is the man who held an impromptu chess tournament at a park in New York during the season just because he wanted to interact with the people and play some chess. He goes to bed early, and believes Las Vegas is a modern-day dystopia.

We're still learning who this kid is, but he's already shown a firm moral code, and while he hasn't been out in the streets marching for anyone's rights, he wasn't shy about speaking out on the violence in a country he's merely adopted as his own. Say what you will about the levels of bravery between one act and the next, but that's not an easy thing to do.

He's a fascinating individual to cover, adding the depth of intrigue to a basketball player who is really just here to entertain. However, we're people too, and Wembanyama never seems to forget that, but he also doesn't let it stand in the way of his ultimate goal. He wants to be great and dominate this league, and everything he does is in service of that. It's a privilege to call him a San Antonio Spur.