ESPN's Wembanyama declaration proves they finally got something right

After failing at placing Stephon Castle and De'Aaron Fox in their top-100 rankings, projecting where players will stack up this season, they finally got one right. Victor Wembanyama crash-landed at number five on the list this year, behind the likes of Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Now, we're talking.

The San Antonio Spurs are counting on this, and that's why they've adjusted their timeline around their franchise star. In the beginning, everyone preached patience, emphasizing the need to let Wembanyama's growth happen organically. Well, he hit the ground running and has only sped up his progress.

As he walks into year three, most understand the problem waiting to get back on the court in Alamo City. The most important group of people who needed to recognize it first work in the front office, and they did. Now, the team around Vic will help him solidify himself as a perennial MVP candidate for the foreseeable future.

Wembanyama is taking the torch from the previous generation

Steph Curry (7) and LeBron James (8) have maintained their greatness for much longer than you would have predicted 10 years ago. It's a credit to their training and the advances made overall in taking care of athletes. Shout out to them, but it's time for a new hero/villain to emerge.

I use both terms because we all know how the trajectory goes. First, they love the new great player as he begins to dominate, before they resent him for always winning and ruining their team's chances of accomplishing the ultimate goal. That's the path for the largest Swiss-Army knife we've ever seen.

We're currently in a time of parity, but that can't last forever. When OKC won the title, they were the seventh different championship winner in as many years. Adam Silver considers this a win for the CBA, as parity is generally a great thing for sports. However, I have another theory. The greats of the past are too old to impact the game like they used to, and there hasn't been a new all-timer... yet.

You can go down the list of greats in their generation, from Michael Jordan to Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Steph Curry; they find a way to get to the NBA Finals repeatedly with different versions of their teams. That's where Wembanyama comes in.

The new CBA may force the Spurs to make moves to reshuffle their roster due to salary cap restrictions over time, but by then, Vic will be so good that he'll still be able to dominate the league. If you doubted it before, being recognized as the fifth-best player in his third year should convince you. If it doesn't, you're just being stubborn. Don't be stubborn.