"I'd give up anybody except Giannis and the Joker … And Luka" - Jalen Rose names the players he would not give up for Victor Wembanyama
Generational 7-foot-3 French NBA draft prospect Victor Wembanyama has taken the basketball world by storm. Wembanyama dominated during his French club Metropolitan 92’s exhibition games versus fellow draft prospect Scoot Henderson and the NBA G League Ignite last week. He finished with 37 and 36 points in the two games, showing off his versatility for his size.
The performance has many people now comparing Wembanyama to Kevin Durant. However, ESPN’s Jalen Rose took the Wembanyama hype further by weighing the 18-year-old’s current trade value compared to the NBA stars.
During a recent ESPN segment, Rose was asked who he would be willing to give up for the No. 1 spot in next year’s draft. However, Rose turned the question around and listed the only three NBA stars he would not be willing to trade for Wembanyama.
“I’d probably give up anybody except Giannis and the Joker … And Luka,” Rose said.
I'd give up anybody except Giannis, the Joker and Luka for Victor Wembanyama. https://t.co/CxuTCAAxuB
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic are all top-five players aged 23 to 27. So it would be risky to trade them for a draft prospect. However, Rose was later asked if his comment meant he would trade older NBA stars such as LeBron James and Kevin Durant for Wembanyama.
“Well, they already put they work. They got those years,” Rose replied.
Considering Wembanyama’s upside and the fact that he already looks so good at such a young age, Rose's claim is plausible. James is turning 38 this season, while Durant is 34. That means they likely have around three to five productive years left in the league.
Meanwhile, barring injury, whichever team lands Wembanyama will likely have a franchise superstar for the next 15-plus years. It would be hard for most teams to pass up that opportunity for long-term success.
Jalen Rose nicknames Victor Wembanyama “Blank Check”
During the same ESPN segment on Victor Wembanyama, Jalen Rose gave Wembanyama a nickname that accurately captures his upside.
“With a long name like that, everybody’s gonna try to come up with a nickname for him," Rose said. "One of my favorite Hall of Fame players is Kevin Garnett, and his nickname was ‘The Big Ticket.’ Until somebody come up with a nickname for him (Wembanyama), Imma just call him ‘Blank Check.’ Because that’s what he represents to me."
The nickname “Blank Check” fits Wembanyama until we see how he performs in the NBA.
Rose later explained his reasoning for the nickname by hyping up Wembanyama even more.
“We talking about him, Adam Silver’s talking about him. LeBron called him an alien. KD’s talking about how he’s gonna change the league. Teams are tanking for him right now,” Rose said.
Based on current expectations, it looks like Victor Wembanyama has the potential to be the NBA’s best draft prospect in recent memory.