Games with high-profile NBA Draft prospects usually happen in the college basketball ranks. According to a new report by Jonathan Givony of ESPN, we’re getting something a little bit different when the two teams that boast the perceived top-2 picks in the 2023 NBA Draft go head-to-head later this year.
Givony reports that Metropolitans 92, the French team that features 18-year-old big man Victor Wembanyama, will come to the United States for a pair of games against the G League Ignite team, which is led by 18-year-old guard Scoot Henderson. This comes as confirmation of a report from Rafael Barlow that there were conversations about making this matchup happen in Las Vegas.
Sources: There are ongoing discussions of a friendly matchup to take place in early October in Las Vegas between Metropolitans 92 and the G League Ignite, featuring the top two projected picks in the 2023 NBA draft – Victor Wembanyama and Scoot Henderson.
— Rafael Barlowe (@Barlowe500) September 4, 2022
The two are penciled in as the players who will go first and second next summer — as of now, Wembanyama is viewed as the favorite to go atop the draft. Both are considered the sorts of franchise-changing prospects that could trigger a race to the bottom among NBA teams who want to increase their odds of getting that high of a pick in next year’s lottery.
As Givony noted, Wembanyama recently measured at 7’4 with an 8-foot wingspan. Despite this, his game does not resemble that of a traditional big man, as he’s as comfortable handling the ball out on the perimeter along as he is protecting the rim. Henderson, meanwhile, was a 2022 recruit who reclassified to 2021 and joined the Ignite team. He turned heads even at his young age, showing off prodigious skills as an explosive and physical guard.