Wembanyama was born and raised in Le Chesnay-Rocquencourt, a western Paris suburb, and has made it a focus this week to introduce his teammates to Parisian culture and the life he led before he became the NBA Rookie of the Year and likely next face of the league.

The teams arrived in Paris on Monday, with practices and other events scheduled throughout the week and then the games toward the end. The Spurs were coming straight from the airport to a light workout in Nanterre — the place where Wembanyama started his pro career in the French league as a 15-year-old.

The high octane glitz of NBA basketball will descend on Paris on Thursday night as the San Antonio Spurs - who feature the French star Victor Wembanyama - take on the Indiana Pacers in the first of two regular season games.

Officially, Indiana will be the home team on the scoreboard when it plays San Antonio in Paris. The Pacers know better. They will not be feeling right at home.

Victor Wembanyama dunks during a loss to the Heat on Sunday. Wembanyama and the Spurs play the Pacers in Paris on Thursday. NANTERRE, France — Officially, Indiana will be the home team on the scoreboard when it plays San Antonio in Paris on Thursday.

Wemby was greeted on Monday in his former gym, where he used to train for Nanterre, the team in a suburb of Paris that discovered Wembanyama in 2019, when the now 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) giant was 15.

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 that he wanted and sketched out himself.

In France, basketball is rapidly growing, and as the NBA looks to capitalize on that, they sent the San Antonio Spurs and Indiana Pacers to Paris to play a series of two games this week. While Accor Arena would likely be sold out anyway, the draw of Victor Wembanyama has been enough for the entire City of Lights to be abuzz with excitement.

Paris has long been a hotspot for basketball, with deep ties to the NBA through its rich history of French players who’ve made their mark in the sport.

Victor Wembanyama has arrived in France, where his San Antonio Spurs will face the Indiana Pacers at Accor Arena on January 23rd and 25th. The young star had his first practice with the team at his former gym in Nanterre.

Victor Wembanyama, the 7'4 basketball prodigy from Le Chesnay-Rocquencourt, France, has become one of the most talked-about names in the NBA. At only 21, the San Antonio Spurs' ri