Victor Wembanyama has arrived and the Celtics have no choice but to react

Monday’s Western Conference Finals opener was an absolute banger of a game. The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs spent 58 minutes trading haymakers before Victor Wembanyama took over in double overtime.

The big Frenchman tallied nine points and four rebounds in double overtime to decisively down the defending champs in Game 1. 

Not to mention that the game only got to a second OT period because of the 22-year-old’s improbable 28-foot pull-up three to tie the game at 108 apiece.

Wemby broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record with his 41-point, 24-rebound performance, to become the youngest player (22 years, 134 days) in league history to eclipse 40 points and 20 rebounds in a playoff game.

He’s going to be doing this for a while, clearly.

For basketball purists, it’s exciting news. What a joy it is to watch a generational talent like Wembanyama compete at the highest level.

Wemby's arrival reminds Celtics fans of what they already knew

From a Boston Celtics perspective, though, it’s terrifying.

Fans were feeling confident that this current core could have a chance to reach the NBA Finals and maybe even win another title this season, just three weeks ago. Now, they’re looking across at these two Western Conference juggernauts feeling like the team’s championship window could be slammed shut.

At least, that’s the case if nothing changes. This summer was already going to be a pivotal one for the Cs. Brad Stevens consistently pointed to the roster needing to improve during his end-of-season presser earlier this month.

“I've got a little sign above my desk that says, 'What do you want? What's true? And how do you get there?'” Stevens told reporters at the Auerbach Center. "There's no question what we want. There's no question when you look at what's true, we did a lot of good things. [But] we lost in the first round, and we were also 3-11 against the top three seeds in the West and the other top two in the East. So, we've got to get better.”

Stevens’ clear dissatisfaction with how the season ended, combined with the early playoff exit itself makes change feel more possible than ever. If Boston reaches the NBA Finals in any of the next few seasons, Wemby and the Spurs will almost certainly be waiting for them, and they don't currently have anyone with a chance of slowing the young star down.

Trading for Giannis now feels like a necessity

No name has come up in rumors more than Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo’s long, drawn-out exit from Milwaukee finally feels ready to come to fruition this summer, and Boston has risen the ranks as a possible landing spot.

There’s been no direct reporting on talks advancing in the last few weeks, but the Cs did check in with the Bucks at the trade deadline to test the waters on a possible trade, according to multiple reports.

The hypothetical pathway to landing Giannis is pretty simple for Boston -- a large reason why they’ve been so heavily linked to him for weeks now.

If they’re willing to part ways with Jaylen Brown, then the financial aspects of the trade would pass. All that would be left is attaching whatever draft compensation or young players the Bucks are looking to acquire.

Not only would adding Giannis give Boston the rim presence that Stevens kept pointing at, but it’d also bring in one of the best defenders in the league.

If you’re hoping to find a player who can slow down Wembanyama in any future NBA Finals matchup, look no further than the Greek Freak.

At 6’11” the 2019-20 NBA Defensive Player of the Year has the size and mobility to defend the 7' 4” Spurs big man and his unique skillset.

Over the past two seasons, Giannis has more than held his own against Wemby. Per Databallr, Antetokounmpo guarded Wembanyama on 71 possessions and held him to just 18.7 points per 75 possessions.

Of course, Wemby is only going to get better as the years go on, while Giannis will lose some of his physical tools as he ages. But, in the present, if the Celtics want to level up to compete with the Spurs, or Thunder for that matter, the path is clear.

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