NBA Draft 2023: Analyzing top 8 teams for protected No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama

The NBA Draft lottery is coming up on Tuesday and while it’s an annual important event, the 2023 version could be the most important one since LeBron James in 2003. Although Zion Williamson in 2020 had a ton of hype after his incredible sole season at Duke. When healthy, he’s been very good for the New Orleans Pelicans but his availability has been the issue.

But the hype for Victor Wembanyama has usurped even that of Williamson. He’s a 19-year basketball player from France who is listed as either 7’4 or 7’5. But unlike guys around his size such as Zach Edey or former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming, Wembanyama has plenty of skill outside of the paint.

This is an elite athlete, who moves and even shoots like a guard. Wembanyama is an awesome defender and shot-blocker and can’t get taken advantage of. He’s been compared to guys like Kristaps Porzingis, Rudy Gobert, and even superstar and future Hall of Famer, Kevin Durant.

There are a lot of quality prospects in this year’s NBA Draft, including Alabama small forward Branon Miller and Scoot Henderson of the G League Ignite Team. Yet there is no debate as to who’ll be the No. 1 pick in the 2023 class, as whoever wins Tuesday’s lottery will be picking the unicorn of France.

While there will be up to 14 teams with a shot at landing the prospect, there are really just eight with any reasonable amount of hope barring a shock. Here’s a look at how he’d fit with each of them.