Wembanyama's scorched Earth tour shows you can 'poke bear' in several ways

De'Andre Hunter learned about poking the bear the hard way after he stood over Victor Wembanyama following his explosive slam to tie the ball game. It was a tightly contested night of hoops, and the energy was palpable. But Hunter let the emotion get the best of him, in the moment, because afterward, Wemby sent the Hawks packing with supreme efficiency and stout defense.

It's the most recent example of what happens when you irritate the Alien. It comes in the midst of an unbelievable run the Frenchman has been on ever since that fateful report from an anonymous scout who claimed that he didn't have an impact on offense. It wasn't very nice, and it was grossly inaccurate, but Wemby has made sure to demonstrate just how ridiculous that declaration was.

Wembanyama has been a top-five offensive player for over a month

It was November 8 when that report came out, and Vic has played 14 games since then. In those contests, he's averaging 29.2 points per game. That's fifth in the league behind LaMelo Ball (31.9) and ahead of Luka Doncic (29.1) in the same time frame. He's shooting 50% FG and 40% 3PT while pulling down 10.2 rebounds and dishing out 4.6 assists.

His defense was never a question, but just to present all the numbers to completion, he's averaging 0.9 steals and 3.9 blocks a night over the same span.

He's now exceeding sophomore expectations after surpassing the projections in his rookie campaign. Wemby is keeping pace with the best offensive players in the league, and he's still figuring things out. Chris Paul's leadership has undoubtedly helped Vic understand how aggressive he needs to be, and his ability to deliver the ball in the right spots has been tremendous.

His numbers on the season, as a whole, are now 24.7 points, 10 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.1 steals, and 3.8 blocks. Any way that you slice it, whether you isolate his recent performances or take the season full sale, Wembanyama is one of the league's best.

LeBron James took a similar leap forward in his second season in the NBA. He went from averaging 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 1.6 steals to 27.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 7.2 assists, and 2.2 steals. It's rare to see guys advance so much, so quickly, but that's what happens when you're supposed to be one of the greatest players the game has ever seen—greatness manifests quickly.

There's also a lesson there that needs to be taught relentlessly since fans and pundits seem to forget the standard. Whether you're on the court or in the media, don't poke the bear.