Wembanyama struggles reminiscent of another Hall-of-Famer in waiting

Victor Wembanyama has finally hit the proverbial wall—a sophomore slump, some would call it. It comes at the worst time since the Spurs are facing their toughest month of the season, playing nothing but good-to-great teams, which would be difficult enough, but they also have to do most of it on the road.

Wemby played like one of the greatest players we've ever seen in December when you combine his defensive output with his offensive production. He averaged 28.5 points and shot 37.7% from three while pulling down 10 boards and blocking 4.4 shots per game.

January hasn't been as kind, but that aligns with what we should have expected at some point because not even LeBron James escaped the legendary sophomore slump that almost every player in the history of the league has gone through.

Wembanyama's 'slippage' is nothing to worry about

LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers did not make the postseason in his second year in the league, but they did win 42 games, tying the number eight-seeded New Jersey Nets. They lost the tie-breaker, though, giving the Nets the lead in the standings.

LeBron averaged 27.2 points per game that year, taking a leap from the 20.9 in his rookie season. It was a fantastic season that earned him MVP votes as a sophomore. But the whole season wasn't sunshine and rainbows for James.

In December 2004, Bron hit his sophomore slump, and his points dipped to 22.7 on less efficiency (45.8%). He didn't average fewer than 26 points in any other month that season. The miracle of players as great as LeBron and Wemby is that their slumps would be considered great games by normal players.

Wembanyama has undoubtedly played his worst basketball of the season this month outside of the first few games of the season when he was shaking off the rust. But his worst basketball is still averaging 20.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 4.7 blocks. These stats, despite how off he looks, only reinforce the confidence everyone should have that Wemby is the next all-time great.

We just watched him average 28.5 points per game for an entire month in December, and based on last year's trajectory, he should get better as the season progresses. But first, the towering Frenchman must go through the same second-year hardships all young players go through.

The Spurs are more than halfway through the month, so I expect the shooting woes to subside soon. Vic can, then, get back to dominating in a more alien-like fashion on the offensive end and not just the always other-worldly defensive side.