Connor Bedard and Victor Wembanyama were giants of pre-draft hype in their respective sports, and it paid off for the generational talents.
Bedard was taken No. 1 overall by the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks and Wembanyama went first to the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs after those teams won their sport’s draft lottery.
But Bedard is on the small side for an NHL player, and Wembanyama is tall – really tall – for an NBA player. They had a chance to meet on Thursday with the Spurs in Chicago to face the Bulls.
The size difference is pretty amazing, with Bedard not even coming close to Wembanyama’s shoulder. Here’s the long and short of their visit:
How tall are Victor Wembanyama and Connor Bedard?
Wembanyama is 7-foot, 4 inches, tied for the tallest player currently in the NBA with Houston Rockets center Boban Marjanovic. Those two are 7 inches taller than the tallest player in NHL history, 6-9 Zdeno Chara.
Bedard is 5-10. He wouldn’t be the shortest if he played in the NBA this season. That status goes to Toronto Raptors guard Markquis Nowell at 5-7.
What did Bedard and Wembanyama do during their meeting?
Bedard showed Wembanyama how to take shots on net. The NBA rookie won a faceoff from Bedard.
What do two generational talents say to each other?
They had heard of the other person before their meeting. Wembanyama said he had not watched a full hockey game but, ‘I love when people just start fighting. It just looks out of this world.’ Asked if he had been in a fight, Bedard said he hadn’t and explained that fighting isn’t as prevalent nowadays as it was in the 1980s.
How are Bedard and Wembanyama doing in their first seasons?
Both are in the mix for rookie of the year. Bedard entered Thursday’s games leading all NHL rookies with 12 goals, 16 assists and 28 points. He was nine points ahead of runner-up Adam Fantilli of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Wembanyama, heading into Thursday, leads NBA rookies in points (19.0), rebounds (11.0), blocks (3.0) and steals (2.7) per game. He’s second in minutes per game. Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren also is among the rookie of the year favorites.
How are their teams faring?
The NBA and NHL are team sports, and one sensational rookie won’t turn around a lottery team. The Spurs are last in the Western Conference at 4-22. The Blackhawks are second to last in the NHL with a 10-20-1 record.