Regardless of how the Western Conference Finals end between the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, it already feels like a warning to the rest of the league.
Victor Wembanyama is here.
The league is preparing for a long-term future where Wembanyama is at the center of the universe. The championship is likely going through San Antonio for years. And any team that wants to challenge them, particularly in the Western Conference, must contend with how to stop Wembanyama -- or at least slow him down -- for much of the next decade.
One truth is now inevitable: Every serious contending team needs to be able to have someone who can stand up to Wembanyama and everything he can do.
The Orlando Magic have not faced Wembanyama many times -- just four times in three seasons, and one of those games. They are dealing with some very small sample sizes.
But as the league assesses this reality, the Magic quietly have had several players who have experienced some success against Wembanyama, or at least have the tools necessary to slow him down.
For a Magic team that has a lot of internal needs to consider -- and being in the Eastern Conference means that Wembanyama is not their most pressing concern -- that could make these players available.
Both Wendell Carter and Jonathan Isaac have gotten their licks in on Victor Wembanyama in their limited matchups. Even the ultra-physical Goga Bitadze has had some success.
The players who will be most successful against him will be those who can be physical with him and versatile enough to defend him when he ventures onto the perimeter.
Wembanyama is not a player any team can stop. But slowing him down could be the difference for teams fighting to win a title.
The Magic vs. Wembanyama
This is not to say Victor Wembanyama has struggled against the Orlando Magic.
In four games, Wembanyama has averaged 19.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.3 blocks per game against the Magic. He has shot 25 for 51 (49.0 percent) from the floor and 5 for 19 (26.3 percent) from three.
Wembanyama has scored fewer points per game against only the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets and New Orleans Pelicans. So the Magic are clearly doing something right.
What all of those teams have in common over the years is size and a lot of big, versatile bodies to throw at him who can keep up with however Wembanyama wants to attack.
Wendell Carter has spent the most time defending Victor Wembanyama in the Orlando Magic's matchups. And like in most matchups, Carter holds his own.
In 10:44 matched up against each other, according to NBA.com's tracking data, Wembanyama has scored 20 points on 7-for-14 shooting with four turnovers.
Those are not killer numbers, especially in a small sample. But Carter has held his own.
In Wembanyama's lone game against the Magic this season -- the February loss in San Antonio -- Wembanyama scored only two points on 1-for-4 shooting when matched with Carter.
He had 25 points and made 11 of 15 free throws in the Spurs' surprising win (they did not land for the game until just before tip-off due to winter storms). Carter was not credited with responsibility for any of the free throws.
Those stats can be fuzzy but they paint a picture of someone who can hang tough with Wembanyama.
The Magic had other players who have had success too.
Jonathan Isaac seems built in a lab -- when healthy -- to deal with Victor Wembanyama because of his size and length.
In 9:48 being matched up against each other all-time, Wembanyama has scored 11 points on 4-for-10 shooting. That included a 2-for-7 showing in the lone matchup in Orlando in 2025 (the game where Wembanyama looked unusually fatigued before his deep vein thrombosis diagnosis).
Goga Bitadze has also matched up with Victor Wembanyama for 6:15, giving up six points and 1-for-7 shooting. But Bitadze did not play in the two games Wembanyama played in the last two years.
Is any of that meaningful enough to move teams? That will certainly be something the Magic can sell somebody on.
The potential market
Undoubtedly the Orlando Magic are worried more about themselves and strengthening their team rather than trying to matchup with some hypothetical NBA Finals opponents. The Magic need to get through the Eastern Conference first.
And the way their roster is made up, they certainly have a lot more pressing needs to add some more size and add some more rim protection than a Wendell Carter can provide.
Whether to trade a player like Carter is one of the big questions the Magic face this offseason. Orlando would likely only do so to acquire a rim-protecting big who can replace him in the starting lineup.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a great example.
Isaiah Hartenstein is proving to be very valuable in this series in a direct matchup with Victor Wembanyama. He is a physical presence around the basket, averaging 7.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in the series. Wembanyama has scored 20 points on 10-for-19 shooting in his most frequent matchup in this series.
The Thunder are preparing to make some major financial decisions. Hartenstein has a $28.5 million team option this offseason. With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams all making more than $40 million next season, they are expected to let Luguentz Dort leave in free agency.
Even if they let Hartenstein walk, trading for an $18 million salary in Carter would present some significant savings and give them a key starter as they reset their books. And they have Holmgren for rim protection next to him.
There would indeed seemingly be a market for a versatile center among contending teams.
Jonathan Isaac is still under a $14.5 million contract that the Magic can move, and that could net something valuable if a team is willing to take that risk on. Isaac's ability to defend Wembanyama or be a defensive specialist might be more valuable to a contender with a more secure offense than it is to a shooting-starved Magic team.
Even Goga Bitadze's $8.5 million salary could be a bargain for a backup center as teams look for the most bodies they can throw at Wembanyama.
The Magic have a lot of players who could help teams who need help. And that is ultimately all the trade market is. It takes one team to be convinced and the right match to pull off a deal.
Considering how vital it will be to defend Wembanyama, anyone who has had success against him will be valuable. And the Magic have multiple guys who have worked well in limited matchups.
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