Scary Wembanyama development silences detractors of his offense

Wemby's season has been as good as it could get for a 22-year-old. The noise for the MVP and DPOY award has been loud, and on top of everything else, the Spurs are winning games. They've been the hottest team in the league post-All-Star break and have a real shot at the top seed out West.

There's been a conversation about Victor's offensive impact on winning as of late, prompted by him a few nights ago as he made his case for the MVP award. Of course, his dominance on that end is highlighted by his scoring and the gravity that he creates, but there's another key development of his that's gotten less attention.

Wembanyama has been underrated as a passer and playmaker, and over his last four games, he is dishing out just over four assists per game.

Playmaking is Wembanyama's most slept-on attribute

While Victor's assist numbers have been attractive as of late, it's important to note that this is not a new occurrence. He's always been solid as a set-up guy, averaging around 3.5 assists per game for his career, peaking at nearly four assists in his debut season.

Now, he's no Rajon Rondo in terms of playmaking, but still very solid for someone of his size and archetype. He's great when it comes to making late decisions and passing out of his shot, which works when defenders like to get underneath him and knock him off balance at this stage in his career.

Another development that I've been obsessed with is his passing in the short roll. Mitch Johnson likes to play around with the idea of him sharing the court with fellow seven-footer Luke Kornet, and we've seen great action out of this. Victor has good instincts, slipping out of ball screens and making reads in the middle of the floor to set up high-low opportunities.

The next evolution in Wemby's game will be a devastating one

Becoming an elite all-around offensive threat is the next major development in Wembanyama's game. His continuous improvement as a passer makes him a player who can have a rough scoring night and still be a net positive for his team on the offensive end.

That was the case in San Antonio's recent win over the Bucks. He scored a rather inefficient 23 points, but his six assists came within the flow of the offense and helped keep the game well out of reach.

That level of impact is a trait that all of the greats possess. Nikola Jokic is widely considered the best player in the NBA, and a lot of that is due to his ability to dominate games as a distributor just as much as he can as a scorer.

Now, will Victor ever be a Jokic-level passer? I doubt it, but the principle still stands. Great players can add to their team's offense even when the shot isn't falling, and for Wemby, this can come through his facilitation.

Detractors of Wemby's offensive impact haven't had a lot to work with as of late. His continued growth as a passer at his position gives his biggest critics even more to reconsider.