WEMBY'S RECOVERY PATH TO RESILIENCE

In this series, The Straits Times highlights the players or teams to watch in the world of sport. Today, we focus on the San Antonio Spurs’ French star Victor Wembanyama and his unorthodox way of dealing with injury.

- Andy Ng Correspondent

Amid the rigours of the National Basketball Association (NBA), where young stars catch ablaze and sometimes burn out, Victor Wembanyama's journey from a grave injury to a summer of soulful reinvention is a testament to resilience unlike any other. At just 21 years old, the San Antonio Spurs' towering centre faced a health crisis that could have derailed his meteoric rise.

Diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis a blood clot in his right shoulder - that abruptly halted his second NBA season in February, Wembanyama was thrust into a world of uncertainty.

This was not a routine sprain or fatigue-related setback; it was a condition that posed risks to both his career and his life, forcing the French phenomenon to confront the injury in ways few athletes his age ever do.

The issue came after a promising start to the 2024-25 campaign, in which Wembanyama had already begun dispelling doubts about his 2.24m-frame's ability to withstand the physical demands of the NBA.

Over his first two years, he had proven his durability, earning Rookie of the Year honours in his debut season and establishing himself as a generational talent with his blend of agility and skill. But the blood clot diagnosis shattered that momentum.

Spring became a blur of hospital visits, consultations with specialists, and ultimately a lot of dread.

"Spending so much time in hospitals, around doctors and hearing more bad news that I wish I hadn't heard, of course, it is traumatic," Wembanyama told ESPN.

The experience left him sidelined, frustrated and acutely aware of life's fragility - a stark reminder that even the most extraordinary bodies have limits.

What followed was not a hasty return to the gym or a passive recovery at home. Instead, Wembanyama chose a radical route - a summer dedicated to holistic transformation, deliberately steering clear of basketball's familiar rhythms.