Victor Webmanyama graces NBA 2K27 cover, explains taking pay cut
Victor Wembanyama has returned to the States after vacationing in France since the NBA Finals ended, and it has been an eventful week for him. He was spotted at the FIFA World Cup Final and naturally went viral, both due to his height and taking advantage of it to shield the sun in a manner no one else in his seated position ever could. (I’m sure it would have been an even better experience for him had France made it out of the semi-finals.)
Another big event for him this week was he received the honor of being on the cover of the NBA 2k27 Standard edition, which will be released on September 4. He is joined by Caitlan Clark and Derrick Rose, who will be on the Deluxe and Ultimate edition covers, respectively.
While Wemby is the first Spur to make the cover of the Standard edition, other Spurs who have made covers in the past include Tony Parker on the NBA 2K17 French edition, Pau Gasol on the same Spanish edition, and Tim Duncan on the NBA 2K17 LIMITED edition.
If we want to get really technical, Dylan Harper and Devin Vassell can also make the same claim thanks to cameo appearances, since Wemby’s image comes from his celebration of hitting a game winner against the Phoenix Suns late in the regular season — the shot that clinched the Spurs’ first playoff berth in 7 years — and those two were captured. According to the Spurs themselves, this is the first time teammates have been on the cover.
Finally, Wemby recently spoke to Jason Jones of The Athletic, and he explained his decision to waive the supermax escalator, which will keep his extension worth the max of 5 years, $252 million without the possibility of it rising to a supermax worth $303 million, saving the Spurs $50 million in cap space over the next five years (beginning next summer). The odds of it escalating would have been very likely considering all it would have taken was he win MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, or make an All-NBA Team — all of which he very well may enter the season as the odds on favorite for.
“We have a good team, we had a very good playoff run, and we had a very good regular season. But what’s even better and greater is our potential. The reality of today’s NBA is that often, the potential of teams is not fulfilled because of money. I just want to make sure it’s never our case.”
While many keep referring to Jalen Brunson as someone who took a similar discount, it’s been going on a lot longer than that in San Antonio, as Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker were all known for taking discounts to keep the team together for the sake of winning over money.
It has been an eventful week in the U.S for Wemby, but soon he will be back overseas to suit up for the French National Team for two FIBA World Cup Qualifers against Slovenia and Sweden on August 27 and 30, respectively. It’s pretty rare for players to play at that level of international play right after making the NBA Finals, but clearly Wemby is ready to get going again. After being robbed of being able to play much basketball and develop last summer while he recovered from deep vein thrombosis, you can’t blame him for wanting to make up for lost time this summer.
