Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama unveils a few pitches in his hometown

LE CHESNAY, France — Victor Wembanyama stood on the center strip of a new outdoor rink in his hometown, his arms outstretched to their full 8-foot wingspan as he posed for a series of photographers.

He couldn’t have seemed happier.

Wembanyama unveiled a gift of sorts to his hometown and the next generation on Tuesday, a pair of outdoor courts — one for 5-on-5 play, the other for 3-on-3 play — that were built to the specifications he wanted and sketched himself.

“For those of you who don’t know, it started in a room with an idea,” San Antonio general manager Brian Wright said as about five dozen kids sat on the court in front of him and another 100 or so people watched from 1 p.m. adjacent seating by the yard. “And I remember watching Victor walk on a whiteboard and literally draw every single detail of the court that you see today and put his heart and soul into designing this court for the kids to play on. It speaks volumes about how special you are and how special it is to you, so thank you, Victor.”

Wembanyama and the Spurs are in France this week, playing a pair of games Thursday and Saturday in Paris against the Indiana Pacers. France is Wembanyama’s homeland, as everyone knows. And it is often assumed that he is from Paris, but he is from Le Chesnay – about 20 kilometers west of the city.

It was important for him to get this done in time for Spurs’ visit there. Others didn’t think it was realistic.

“Impossible,” said Le Chesnay’s mayor, Richard Delepierre.

The challenges were many: there were old tracks in the room to be excavated, designs to be approved, not great weather for construction at this time of year and, if all that wasn’t enough, building something so close to Versailles- the castle seems to be a bit of a logistical headache to say the least.

But that’s what Wemby wanted. And that makes things happen, especially in his hometown.

“In addition to his immense basketball talents, Victor appears to possess great artistic qualities and a certain capacity for persuasion,” Delepierre said.

Construction really got underway just a few months ago. But on Tuesday, on a chilly afternoon, it was finished. The new nets were in place, the fibers still close together, as if to show that not a single shot had passed through them yet. The kids peeled back a black drape to show off the center court design — a nod to both the Spurs’ logo and the Le Chesnay clock tower — and Wembanyama caught a lob for the ceremonial first dunk.

“It was also my dream to have this kind of courts when I lived here,” Wembanyama said.

Le Chesnay is a small town with around 30,000 inhabitants, a little west of the center of Paris. From the town hall there is a view of the Palace of Versailles, the home that King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette shared in the late 18th century before he was beheaded during the French Revolution. Local legend suggests that Napoleon roamed the area at times and even ordered trees to be planted to line the streets a certain way.

This is also where Wembanyama’s basketball life began to grow.

Local officials say the majority of residents there – Chesnaycourtois and Chesnaycourtoise – participate in some form of sporting activity. Wembanyama caused a bit of a stir in town when he brought friends in for an impromptu football match last year, some of them roaming the same pitch as they did as young children. Handball is extremely popular there, as are car racing and equestrian sports. There was even a filly named Le Chesnay that raced at the famous Saratoga Race Course in 2009.

But officially or unofficially, it’s a basketball town now. Kids play the game all the time in Le Chesnay, most of them – as you’d guess – wearing Spurs jerseys or T-shirts. Wembanyama’s 6-foot-3 mother, Elodie de Fautereau, was a prominent player and turned coach.

“Spurs’ ‘Play Paris’ initiative isn’t just about building a court, it’s about creating a vibrant hub for the community that honors Victor’s journey and his commitment to giving back,” said RC Buford, CEO of Spurs Sports and Entertainment. “This renovated space will hopefully inspire the next generation and show the power of sport to bring people together.”

The Spurs have not said what they spent on the project, but it was a “significant” portion of the estimated $500,000 budget, Delepierre said. It is also important to note that the courts are not a Wembanyama tribute; the city logo and the Spurs logo are present, but nothing that screams 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year.

He didn’t want them to be about him. And they finished just in time.

“Impossible,” said Delepierre, retracting his earlier statement, “is not French.”