Last offseason’s unusual training with Chinese monks and legends like Hakeem Olajuwon and Kevin Garnett truly helped Victor Wembanyama take the next leap. The San Antonio superstar went on to become the first-ever unanimous DPOY and led a deep playoff run that included Western Conference Finals MVP honors. But the NBA championship still eluded the French phenom.

So, the 22-year-old continued preparing for the NBA by pursuing non-basketball activities. According to Yanis Guillou and David Bourniquel of Rugbyrama, Wemby has spent his time taking part in multiple drills alongside French rugby club Provence Rugby.

“According to our sources, the Aix-based club has been hosting the world’s most famous basketball player, Victor Wembanyama, since Monday. Renowned for his astonishing height (2.24 m) and exceptional skill, the San Antonio Spurs center joined Provence Rugby’s preseason training for a few days before the start of the Pro D2 season.

“To everyone’s surprise, the Frenchman participated in several workshops during training sessions, not only wearing his cleats, but also fully immersed himself in the Provençal squad, sharing the players’ daily routine. It’s worth noting that he wasn’t the only NBA player present, as his Spurs teammate Harrison Barnes also trained during this very special week.”

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The training sessions were carefully planned and kept discreet between Victor Wembanyama and Provence Rugby. No images of the NBA star with a rugby ball were captured, and the club declined to comment when contacted.

Given the Spurs star’s popularity, the lack of publicity appears to have allowed him to train without crowds gathering around the facility. Wemby had previously told ESPN that training with a rugby team was something he wanted to experience because of the similarities between the sports.

“There is one thing I wanted to do but couldn’t do last year, which is to train with a rugby team,” Wembanyama said. “It’s the same movement patterns, but my body isn’t used to doing them. And I’ll be able to transpose that to what I do in basketball. These are very interesting things.”

His interest even caught the attention of Union Bordeaux-Bègles manager Yannick Bru. After hearing that Wembanyama wanted to train with a rugby team, Bru joked during a press conference that the NBA star would be welcome at UBB.

“Tell Victor he’s welcome at UBB and that we’ll make use of his skills,” Bru said, adding that Shaun Sowerby on his staff would be particularly happy to have him around.

Wembanyama had used Brive’s training facilities the previous summer while recovering from shoulder surgery, though he wasn’t able to actually train with that club at the time; this time, he chose Provence Rugby for his rugby experience.

But rugby is far from the first unusual training method Victor Wembanyama has explored during the offseason. Last year, he traveled to China and trained with Shaolin monks as part of his preparation. His routine included multiple 90-minute meditation sessions, training in the Shaolin 13 Fist Form (a foundational form of Kung Fu), and following the same strict vegan diet as the monks.

After returning from the trip, Wembanyama continued pushing himself. He challenged his Spurs teammates to take turns trying to score on him, with each player going at the French big man one-on-one. Wembanyama repeatedly shut them down before sprinting the length of the court, continuing his preparation with the goal of being ready to make a deep playoff run.

Now, Victor Wembanyama has added rugby to that list. Once again showing that his offseason preparation goes well beyond traditional basketball workouts.