Ever since Victor Wembanyama burst onto the scene, he’s been nothing but spectacular. However, reaching (and maintaining) that level of consistency doesn’t come for free. Fresh off winning the 2026 Western Conference MVP and heading straight for the NBA Finals, fans are finally getting an inside look at exactly what it has taken to be Wemby so far.

Over the last few hours, social media has been flooded with clips of the French star and his Spurs teammates training underwater. It doesn’t seem AI-generated. Wembanyama was actually performing intense dumbbell lunges, squats, and resistance moves in a swimming pool. They even tried synchronized swimming.

“Wemby out here training like a Navy Seal 😭 Are the Knicks cooked?” the caption read.

But, don’t be mistaken: This is an old video, back when De’Aaron Fox was on the newer side. Jeremy Sochan, who has left San Antonio, can also be spotted. Meaning, this is definitely a dated clip that hasn’t lost its charm.

Notably, Sochan had also posted a similar video ten months ago with the caption, “In the offseason we decided to start doing synchronized swimming…” So the viral underwater video that has resurfaced is most likely from that same day, if not from those sessions.

In case you’re wondering why basketball stars are practicing in a pool, Wemby may be using this aquatic method to build strength, endurance, and core stability without putting any excess pressure on his joints. It’s a good team-bonding activity, too. In fact, the Spurs players are not the only ones to have trained underwater. In 2024, Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown was filmed standing on the pool’s base while dribbling with his left hand and holding a 40-pound dumbbell with his right.

Pivoting back to Wemby, his unusual training methods since a blood clot ended his season early in February 2025 have just gotten tougher. His previous offseason training regimen already included the famous Shaolin monk training camp, barefoot crawling, and specialized toe-strengthening exercises.

A day at his spiritual retreat in China consisted of multiple 90-minute meditation sessions, a form of Kung Fu known as the Shaolin 13 Fist Form, and even following the same strict vegan diet as the other monks. Master Yan’an had revealed that the French center was open to dribbling a basketball up a “dangerous mountain route” that he climbed, gaining about 2,500 feet in elevation. He completed the trail in about 4.5 hours, even though it typically takes between seven and eight hours to finish!

Upon returning to the Spurs training camp, Wemby asked his teammates to take turns and try to score on him. One by one, every player went at the Frenchman, only to be flat-out denied. Julian Champagnie noticed something interesting, though. Everyone except Wemby was getting the occasional breather in between. But he didn’t stop even after the entire team finished making attacking plays. The 22-year-old started sprinting the length of the court instead.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone work out like that,” Champagnie told The Athletic. “It’s crazy to see.”

When Wemby was asked about why he trained at that intensity during the offseason, the Spurs leader said he went to work with a vengeance.

“My training this summer, it was brutal,” Wemby admitted. “This summer, I chose to do something much more violent. Maybe that takes away from some time I can spend on shooting the basketball, but it doesn’t matter. I wanted to get my body back.”

After all this offseason prep, Wemby continued his domination across the 2025-26 season. The 22-year-old put up a career-high scoring average (25 points) and shooting (51.2 percent), but he has become a nightmare for the opposition in the postseason.

After 17 games, his averages are 23.2 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game while shooting 51 percent from the field and 37% from beyond the arc. There is more to his postseason debut: 4 games with 30+ points, 1 game with 40+ points, 6 games with 15 or more rebounds, and 4 games with 5+ blocks.

This has led the Spurs to turn favorites at -220 over New York, which remains the underdog despite their historic 11-game unbeaten streak. And while San Antonio heads into the Finals with confidence after beating OKC, the fanbase cannot help but appreciate the underwater drills and other training regimens that have led to this successful outcome.

Fans are buzzing over Victor Wembanyama’s aquatic edge

A fan remembered the off-season hard work that Wemby put in and was quick to comment, sending a warning signal to the Knicks.

“Firstly, he climbs dangerous mountains with shaolin monks, now he’s doing literal Navy Seal water conditioning 🥺.he’s a literal amphibious Alien weapon atp. This is horror movie behavior. The Knicks be better be scared,” a fan wrote.

Some even equated this to Victor Wembanyma training his lungs for clutch time during games. So far, the Spurs star has played 32.5 minutes per game in the playoffs. In a video from Game 7, the 22-year-old looked tired, leaning over veteran Bismack Biyombo and soaking in every piece of advice.

That’s why another fan detailed, “he’s trying to improve his vo2 max , weights + holding your breath underwater without getting tired . his big frame conditioning as an issue as his heart has to work twice as hard as me or you.”

Since it is an old video, Wemby has already mastered this method and other breathing techniques. Don’t be surprised, though, if he picks up another hobby in a few weeks. On the other hand, some fans didn’t realize the video was old and had a hard time believing how the Spurs center was preparing.

“Dawg what could Wemby possibly be training for 😭💀 Knicks might be COOKED 😂,” a netizen wrote.

Another fan hoped that this video would give New York some encouragement of its own.

“wemby is working hard looks like he wants to dominate hope the knicks bring their best too,” an individual wrote.

We already know that Wemby goes by the nickname The Alien. So, this fan took things a notch higher and compared the Spurs star to Godzilla.

“Wemzilla is underwater, headed to destroy New York.” In the actual movie, the giant monster tore through the city, destroying landmarks like the Brooklyn Bridge and Madison Square Garden. Now, Wemby won’t physically destroy the MSG, but be sure he’ll suck the arena’s soul out of it with his performance.