Victor Wimpanyama: Chess, monks and a trip to NASA – Wimpy’s unusual pre-season

In an off-season that started two months earlier than scheduled, due to injury, Wembanyama’s popularity continued to rise.

On his way to becoming the fastest player in NBA history to attract a total of 1 billion social media followers and likes on posts across platforms, Wimpanyama has made the most of his time off the court.

Athletes often vacation in their spare time, but Wembanyama went further, spending 10 days at a Shaolin temple in Zhengzhou, China, training with monks.

His journey did not stop there. Videos have surfaced of him playing soccer with locals in Costa Rica and Tokyo.

Wimbanyama, nicknamed “The Alien”, also visited NASA’s Johnson Space Center, hosted a chess and basketball tournament at his private court in Le Chesnay in France, and met Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe.

Wembanyama is also an avid reader, and can often be found immersed in a book in the hours leading up to matches.

“He’s very intentional in a variety of ways in which he tries to improve as a player and a person,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said.

“He is constantly trying to push himself out of his comfort zone and learn new things.”

On the court, Hakeem Olajuwon, the 1994 NBA MVP and 12-time NBA All-Star, invited Wambanyama to train with him privately at one of the most exclusive camps in the sport. Past attendees include LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the late Kobe Bryant.

He also trained with another great in the sport, Kevin Garnett, on his way to his long-awaited return on Wednesday.

While Wimbanyama said all of his summer extracurricular activities are “worthy of respect,” he puts returning to full basketball fitness above all else — with the help of time spent with Olajuwon and Garnett.

The French star added: “I can assure you that no one trained like I did this summer.”

“I think I’ve reached the limit of what I can do in one summer. Now, I need to play basketball.”