For any NBA prospect, the launch pad is just as important as the landing zone, and Victor Wembanyama is no different.

Gregg Popovich was the face of the San Antonio Spurs‘bench for decades for good reasons. He and his team have produced some of the best players in the league, and Wembanyama is on the same path. Whether fans agree or not, NBA champion and former Spur Danny Green agrees.

Green took to the airwaves yesterday to discuss the impact a coach like Popovich can have on a player’s rookie season.

“(Wembanyama is) much better off,” Green said. “Run it Back” by FanDuel. “(It’s) huge, and I’m talking about Joel (Embiid) and all these All-Stars, these superstars, and I think a lot of their careers and trajectories would have been very different if they played for a different coach at first.

“No disrespect to the coaches who coached them…but it’s hard to go into a situation and try to make someone professional after seeing unprofessional atmospheres.”

Green won a championship with the Spurs in 2014 and set the NBA record for three-pointers made in an NBA Finals series in 2013. He is only the third former Carolina basketball player North to win both an NBA and NCAA championship, joining James Worthy. and Michael Jordan.

Popovich has coached the likes of Kawhi Leonard at the top of the league, and with Wembanyama’s talent on full display during his rookie campaign, the veteran coach now has a chance to mold Wembanyama to reach his full potential.

He just needs to get over his sophomore slump.

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