San Antonio Spur Victor Wembanyama answers questions from the press at Saturday’s ceremony. Credit: Kiko Martinez

San Antonio Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama is officially an alien.

If his intergalactic play this season didn’t have you believing he was from another planet, Wembanyama, the NBA 2023-24 Rookie of the Year (ROTY), accepted the Wilt Chamberlain Trophy on Saturday afternoon at San Antonio College’s Scobee Education Center & Planetarium.

That’s one small step for Wemby, one giant leap for the future of the NBA.

“This is one of the representations of our progression throughout the year and the efforts we all made on the court,” Wembanyama, 20, said during a press conference. “It’s a good feeling for me and a good representation of the love that we found throughout the whole year.”

Wembanyama became the third Spurs player to claim rookie honors, following David Robinson (1989-90) and Tim Duncan (1997-98). He also became only the sixth unanimous winner of the ROTY award in NBA history.

Before the press conference, Wembanyama interacted with area kids who were invited to the event. They joined the 7-foot-4 player inside the planetarium’s screening room where he delivered a presentation to them about dark matter.

San Antonio kids trade very high fives with Wemby at Saturday’s gathering. Credit: Kiko Martinez

According to NASA, dark matter is a mysterious substance that affects and shapes the cosmos, and it’s something scientists are still trying to figure out. If Spurs legend Tim Duncan went full geek for Dungeons & Dragons and Renaissance fairs, it looks like Wembanyama is a nerd for astronomy.

Wembanyama has no plans to go to space anytime soon, however. He said this summer he’ll get a couple of weeks to relax before he’s back on the court getting ready to represent France at the 2024 Summer Olympics. Then, it will be time to start his second year in the NBA in October.

“This summer is special because it’s pretty busy,” he said.

When the ROTY announcement was made earlier this week on Inside the NBA on TNT, analyst and Hall of Famer Charles Barkley said Wembanyama was “in a great situation with Coach [Gregg] Popovich” because Pop would “teach him how to play basketball the right way.”

The Current asked Wembanyama what playing the “right way” meant to him during his rookie season.

“There’s a difference between us, the Spurs, and the way we play, and 90 percent of the teams in the league,” he said. “I feel like we involve all the players on the court. We have this will to share the ball. I’m glad this is something the Spurs have been [doing] for years. If there’s one person who can teach you basketball [the right way], it’s Pop.”

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