Victor Wembanyama is officially a San Antonio Spur.
After years of anticipation, the French phenom joined the NBA on Thursday night as the first pick in the NBA Draft. As widely expected, the Spurs selected the 7-foot-4 center, who is expected to transform the position and lead San Antonio from the lottery back to NBA prominence.
Wembanyama follows in the footsteps in San Antonio of fellow No. 1 overall picks David Robinson and Tim Duncan, who went on to Hall of Fame careers while combining to lead the Spurs to five NBA championships. Spurs fans won’t have to wait long to see him. Head coach Gregg Popovich confirmed after the selection that Wembanyama will play Summer League games.
“We’re talking about what he’s going to do going forward,” Popovich told reporters. … “He will participate in the Summer League. To what extent we are not sure yet.”
With the No. 2 pick, the Hornets took Alabama’s Brandon Miller, selecting 6-9 forward over G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson. The Portland Trail Blazers then pounced on the opportunity to select the player widely considered the second-best player in the draft and took Henderson with the No. 3 pick.
Follow pick-by-pick live updates, analysis and grades with Yahoo Sports below.
What: NBA Draft, two rounds consisting of 58 total picks (two picks were forfeited due to tampering rule violations)
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn
When: 8:00 PM ET Thursday
TV: ABC (first round only); ESPN (first and second rounds)
What you need to know about the 2023 NBA Draft
Follow 2023 NBA Draft live updates, picks, analysis
Full 2023 NBA Draft order
First round
1. San Antonio Spurs: Victor Wembanyama, C, France
2. Charlotte Hornets: Brandon Miller, F, Alabama
3. Portland Trail Blazers: Scoot Henderson, G, G League Ignite
4. Houston Rockets: Amen Thompson, G Overtime Elite
5. Detroit Pistons: Ausar Thompson, G, Overtime Elite
6. Orlando Magic: Anthony Black, G, Arkansas
7. Washington Wizards (from Pacers): Bilal Coulibaly, F, France
8. Indiana Pacers (from Wizards): Jarace Walker, F, Houston
9. Utah Jazz: Taylor Hendricks, F, UCF
10. Oklahoma City Thunder (from Mavericks): Cason Wallace, G, Kentucky
11. Orlando Magic (from Bulls): Jett Howard, G, Michigan
12. Dallas Mavericks (from Thunder): Derek Lively II, C, Duke
13. Toronto Raptors: Gradey Dick, G, Kansas
14. New Orleans Pelicans: Jordan Hawkins, G, UConn
15. Atlanta Hawks: Kobe Bufkin, G, Michigan
16. Utah Jazz (from Timberwolves): Keyonte George, G, Baylor
17. Los Angeles Lakers: Jalen Hood-Schifino, G, Indiana
18. Miami Heat: Jaime Jaquez Jr., F, UCLA
19. Golden State Warriors: Brandin Underworld, G, Santa Clara
20. Houston Rockets (from Clippers): Cam Whitmore, G, Villanova
21. Brooklyn Nets (from Phoenix): Noah Clowney, F, Alabama
22. Brooklyn Nets: Dariq Whitehead, G, Duke
23. Portland Trail Blazers (from New York): Kris Murray, F, Iowa
24. Dallas Mavericks (from Kings): Olivier-Maxence Prosper, F, Marquette
25. Detroit Pistons (from the Grizzlies via Celtics): Marcus Sasser, G, Houston
26. Indiana Pacers (from Cleveland): Ben Sheppard, F, Belmont
27. Charlotte Hornets (from Denver via New York and Oklahoma City): Nick Smith Jr., G, Arkansas
28. Utah Jazz (from Philadelphia via Brooklyn): Brice Sensabaugh, F, Ohio State
29. Denver Nuggets (reported trade with Indiana via Boston): Julian Strawther, F, Gonzaga
30. Los Angeles Clippers (from Milwaukee via Houston): Kobe Brown, F, Missouri
Second round
31. Boston Celtics (from Pistons): James Nnaji, C, FC Barcelona (Spain), Nigeria
32. Denver Nuggets (reported trade with Indiana via Houston): Jalen Pickett, G, Penn State
33. Minnesota Timberwolves (from San Antonio Spurs): Leonard Miller, F, G League Ignite
34. Sacramento Kings (reported trade with the Celtics via Charlotte): Colby Jones, G, Xavier
35. Chicago Bulls (reported trade with Wizards via BostonPortland, Atlanta, Clippers, Detroit and Cleveland): Julian Phillips, F, Tennessee
36. Milwaukee Bucks (via Orlando Magic): Andre Jackson Jr., G, UConn
37. Denver Nuggets (reported trade via Oklahoma City, Washington and New Orleans): Hunter Tyson, F, Clemson
38. Boston Celtics (from Sacramento via Indiana): Jordan Walsh, F, Arkansas
39. Boston Celtics (from Charlotte, via Utah, New York): Mouhamed Gueye, F, Washington State
40. Los Angeles Lakers (reported trade via Indiana Pacers, Dallas, Oklahoma City): Maxwell Lewis, F, Pepperdine
41. Charlotte Hornets (from Oklahoma City via New York and Boston): Amari Bailey, G, UCLA
42. Washington Wizards (from Chicago via Los Angeles Lakers and Washington): Tristan Vukcevic, F, Serbia
43. Portland Trail Blazers (from Atlanta): Rayan Rupert, G, France
44. San Antonio Spurs (from Toronto): Sidy Cissoko, G, G League Ignite
45. Memphis Grizzlies (from Minnesota): GG Jackson, F, South Carolina
46. Atlanta Hawks (from New Orleans): Seth Lundy, G, Penn State
47. Indiana Pacers (reported trade with Lakers)
48. Los Angeles Clippers
49. Cleveland Cavaliers (from Golden State via Utah and New Orleans)
50. Oklahoma City Thunder (from Miami via Boston, Memphis and Dallas)
51. Brooklyn Nets
52. Phoenix Suns
53. Minnesota Timberwolves (from New York via Charlotte)
54. Sacramento Kings
55. Indiana Pacers (from Cleveland via Milwaukee and Detroit)
56. Memphis Grizzlies
— Lost election of Chicago
— Lost election of Philadelphia
57. Washington Wizards (from Boston via Charlotte)
58. Milwaukee Bucks