Translation of the article content into English:
Yao Ming is the pride of Chinese basketball and the only Chinese national number one pick, as well as a member of the NBA Hall of Fame. When Yao first entered the league, he was a tall and thin interior player, and now Victor Wembanyama is also a tall and thin interior player who has entered the NBA as the number one pick.
Today, let's take a comprehensive look at the comparison between these two peak interior number one picks.
Static Talent Comparison
Yao Ming stands at 2.26 meters tall, while Victor Wembanyama is approximately 2.24 meters tall, making Yao slightly taller. However, Wembanyama has an arm span of 2.44 meters, compared to Yao's 2.20 meters, clearly showing Wembanyama's advantage in arm span. This gives him a more significant advantage in defensive coverage area and offensive rebounding.
Athletic Ability Comparison
Wembanyama possesses excellent running and jumping abilities, as well as flexibility, allowing him to move quickly on the court and provide support defensively. His body coordination and balance are also good, enabling him to perform some difficult actions during offense and defense.
In contrast, Yao's athletic ability is slightly inferior, but his ability to compete in the paint is stronger. He can use his height and weight to occupy a favorable position under the basket, as he is a traditional center.
Technical Skill Comparison
Yao's interior skills are comprehensive and exquisite, with proficient use of back-to-basket moves, hook shots, and small-range fadeaway jumpers. His footwork in the paint is agile, and he can use feints to shake off opponents before completing an attack.
While Wembanyama also has some interior offensive capabilities, he relies more on his height and long arms for shooting or layups. In terms of strong attacks and physicality in the paint, he is not as good as Yao.
Outside Shooting Comparison
Wembanyama has a strong outside shooting ability, with a three-point shooting percentage of 32.5%. He can create space for the team from the outside, enriching the team's offensive tactics, which aligns with the current trend for centers.
Yao's three-point shooting percentage is only 20.0%, but in his era, the three-pointer was not the main offensive method for centers. He mainly focused on mid-range and inside scoring. Yao's mid-range shooting was very accurate and was once one of his signature moves.
Ball Handling Ability Comparison
Wembanyama has good ball handling skills, capable of dribbling and organizing offense himself. He possesses a certain degree of passing vision and organizational ability, looking like an ultra-tall point guard. To adapt to the small-ball era, this is inevitable.
As one of the representatives of traditional centers, Yao's ball handling ability is relatively weak. He is more of an offensive finisher rather than an offensive organizer.
Defensive Ability Comparison
Wembanyama averages 3.6 blocks per game, and his height and long arms allow him to effectively interfere with opponents' shots, showcasing outstanding blocking ability; Yao averages 1.9 blocks per game. Although his block statistics are not as high as Wembanyama's, his defensive presence in the paint is significant, as he can limit opponents' offense with his height and weight.
Yao's defensive awareness is excellent, able to judge opponents' passing routes and offensive intentions well, and timely provide assistance and defensive support; As a young player, Wembanyama still needs to improve in defensive awareness and experience, but his potential is huge. With the accumulation of game experience, his defensive ability is expected to further improve.
Data Comparison
In his rookie season, Wembanyama averaged 21.4 points per game, higher than Yao's career average of 19.0 points. However, Wembanyama's NBA career has just begun, after all, he is only 21 years old. As long as he stays healthy, his career scoring will definitely not be low.
Yao averaged 9.2 rebounds per game in his career, while Wembanyama averaged 10.6 rebounds per game in his rookie season. Wembanyama is more active in rebounding and has better rebounding awareness.
Wembanyama has shown a certain level of organizational ability in his rookie season, with a high average assist count, reaching 3.9 times; Yao's assist count is relatively lower, at 1.6 times, as he focuses more on scoring and rebounding.
Career Achievement Comparison
Yao is a very successful player, having been selected multiple times for the All-Star team and the best lineup, with strong dominance at the center position. On the international stage, Yao led the Chinese men's basketball team to achieve many excellent results, making significant contributions to the development and promotion of Chinese basketball. Additionally, he was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame, which is an impressive feat.
As a rookie, Wembanyama has already shown great potential and talent, winning the Rookie of the Year and First Team All-Defense awards for the 2023-2024 season. However, his career is still long, and there is a lot of room for future development. It is believed that Wembanyama's future achievements will also be remarkable.
Influence Comparison
Yao's influence on basketball extends beyond the court, contributing to the advancement of Chinese and Asian basketball. He is a symbol of Chinese basketball, bringing more people to understand and pay attention to the sport, inspiring countless Chinese youth to pursue basketball, and simultaneously enhancing the status and influence of Chinese basketball internationally.
As a representative of the younger generation, Wembanyama demonstrates the trends and limitless possibilities of modern basketball. His playing style and technical characteristics have attracted the attention of many fans, positively impacting French and European basketball development. In the future, he is expected to exert even greater influence globally.
Finally, here's a question: If Yao Ming and Victor Wembanyama were drafted together, who would be the number one pick?