Victor Wembanyama’s unconventional offseason mixes Kung Fu, meditation and lessons from Hakeem Olajuwon
wembanyama-offseason-transformation-olajuwon-shaolin-summer
San Antonio — Six months after being diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder, San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama spent the summer rebuilding his body and mind through a series of unorthodox training stops that stretched from a Shaolin temple in China to a secluded gym outside Houston.
Hall-of-Fame tutoring in Texas
In early September, the 21-year-old worked four separate 2½-hour sessions with 62-year-old Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon at the former Houston Rockets star’s private court on a 400-acre ranch in Katy, Texas, about 30 miles east of Houston. The court, painted Rockets red and stamped with Olajuwon’s No. 34 and the word “Dream,” hosted drills designed to sharpen footwork and conserve energy.
“Our concept was ‘big guards,’” Olajuwon said. “You can play 1 through 5 with freedom to create, inside or outside, without wasting energy.” Wembanyama emerged with his own spin on Olajuwon’s famed “Dream Shake” and a jump hook he has yet to unveil publicly.
A summer built around recovery
The workouts capped an offseason sparked by the January health scare that one associate called “career- and life-threatening.” Labeling the experience traumatic, the 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year sought out challenges “outside the box” to fortify himself physically and mentally.
Ten days with Shaolin monks
Before the Olajuwon sessions, Wembanyama spent 10 days at the 5th-century Shaolin Temple in Zhengzhou, China. Rising at 4:30 a.m., eating vegetarian meals of zucchini and rice noodles, shaving his head and practicing Chan meditation and Shaolin Kung Fu, he looked to enhance strength, flexibility, balance and range of motion. “It was an incredible experience,” he said. “Probably as far off a physical activity as I’m used to doing.”
Global itinerary
Other stops included:
- Soccer workouts in Costa Rica and Tokyo, where a bicycle-kick attempt went viral and a curling free kick found the net.
- A chess-and-basketball tournament on his court in Le Chesnay, France.
- A visit to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where he studied astronaut Peggy Whitson’s 675 days in space.
- Mental-strength sessions with former NBA great Kevin Garnett.
Support from San Antonio
Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson praised Wembanyama’s curiosity and willingness to “push himself out of his comfort zone,” while new teammates such as De’Aaron Fox pointed to the forward’s broadened view of life and basketball.
The organization embraced his ideas off the court as well. On Sept. 14 at Freeman Expo Hall, Wembanyama served as sole judge during tryouts for a new supporter section modeled after Paris Saint-Germain’s ultras, pledging to buy season tickets for the five most memorable fans. Four days earlier, he led the Spurs in a community visit to flood-ravaged Tom Moore High School in Ingram, Texas, tossing T-shirts and completing a through-the-legs self alley-oop as students cheered.
Reflecting on the whirlwind summer, Wembanyama said, “I can assure you nobody has trained like I did. I think I’ve maxed out what I could do in one summer. Now, I need to play basketball.”
Source: ESPN
