I just want to underline that this week was amazing,” Spurs star Victor Wembanyama said after Saturday's game versus the Pacers.

The story, as Buford tells it, goes like this: Claudio Crippa, an international scout for the Spurs, proposed going to see a youth game before checking out Doumbouya. Buford saw Wembanyama play for the first time that day. And the seeds for the Spurs' new master plan were immediately planted.

The Texas-based basketball franchise will play the first of its two NBA games in Paris against the Indiana Pacers on Thursday.