The man behind keeping Victor Wembayama healthy.

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1. BEFORE VICTOR WEMBANYAMA could properly introduce himself to the basketball world last October, first, he had to warm up.

   Curious onlookers at the Dollar Loan Center outside of Las Vegas — many of whom were NBA scouts — congregated early on the floor to find Wembanyama going through somewhat unusual paces ahead of his debut on American soil.

   Of course, there were dunks and jumpers and typical pregame basketball activities. But Wembanyama’s systematic, full-body warmup also left an impression.

   Cameras flashed as Wembanyama bent forward onto his palms, bear crawling with his bare toes, crawling methodically along the sidelines. He spent a large part of the time barefoot, specifically warming up his feet that wear size 20.5 shoes.

   Later, the 7-foot-5 Wembanyama juggled three tennis balls at once before he turned his back and began catching them over his shoulder with his back turned, a drill that seemed intended more for center fielders than centers.

   While his style of play can be heavily improvisational, every aspect of Wembanyama’s preparation is planned. Shadowing him in every viral warmup video has been Guillaume Alquier, the mastermind behind the whole routine. Metropolitans 92’s strength and conditioning coach was hand-picked by Wembanyama’s team to prepare the future No. 1 pick of the San Antonio Spurs for the rigors of an NBA workload.

   In the stands that week in Nevada, NBA executives wondered whether Wembanyama would play again this season after his head-turning two games against G League Ignite in a head-to-head matchup with projected top-3 pick Scoot Henderson.

   In order to prevent injury, he could have sat the season out, trained privately and still gone No. 1 on draft night. However, Wembanyama made it clear that he wanted to play basketball. And with Metropolitans 92 on the cusp of the French Pro A Finals entering Friday’s game against his former club, ASVEL, Wembanyama, under Alquier’s supervision, hasn’t missed a game this season in 57 appearances across all competitions since September.

   Wembanyama’s offseason move to Metropolitans 92, which finished third the previous season, had quite a bit to do with keeping him healthy. He’d spent the past year with ASVEL, the Lyon-based club owned by retired Spurs great Tony Parker, but it hadn’t been a banner year. His minutes and role fluctuated before a back injury requiring eight weeks of rest ended his season last May.

   Wembanyama’s agents, Bouna Ndiaye and Jeremy Medjana, took a longer view. The move to Metropolitans, a non-EuroLeague team that played only a domestic schedule, allowed for fewer games, more practice and recovery time, and paired Wembanyama with coach Vincent Collet, who also coaches the French national team.

   It also enabled the 19-year-old to bring a dedicated body man along for the ride.

   “Bouna came to me and asked if I wanted to work with Victor,” Alquier told ESPN. “After that, the decision was made.”

   OFTEN DRAPED IN the shadow of Wembanyama’s 8-foot wingspan, Alquier is an unassuming figure on the sidelines, bearded and lightly graying. The 30-year-old grew up in Pau, a small city in the southwest of France, and began his training career in 2015 with local club Pau-Orthez. He worked his way up to the Pro A level through the youth academy and rugby team. He also earned a master’s in sports and conditioning in nearby Tarbes.

   Over the years, Alquier built a strong relationship with Ndiaye, having worked closely with Comsport clients including 2016 draft pick Petr Cornelie in his time at Pau-Orthez and Tony Parker’s summer academy camps. Toward the end of last season, Pau-Orthez faced the danger of relegation to the French third division due to financial hardships. Last summer, Ndiaye called Alquier with an opportunity he couldn’t refuse.

   Meanwhile, Metropolitans 92, a club previously on the brink of financial dissolution, has been rejuvenated by Wembanyama’s arrival for now. Collet had initially faxed in his resignation as Met 92 coach in order to focus on the national team and the 2024 Paris Olympics. But he chose to stay at Metropolitans in order to work with Wembanyama in what would be his final year playing in France.

   The team’s entire setup this season was built out to facilitate its star player’s development. The plan has been a success with Wembanyama establishing himself as the league’s top player, winning league MVP and leading his team to the Pro A semifinals.

   Their partnership began after Wembanyama returned from his first trip to the United States last August with a three-hour sit-down meeting, running through Wembanyama’s physical history, what he’d done with previous coaches, doctors and specialists and his own goals for himself.

   “I saw in the first minute [we met] he was very active on his own project,” Alquier said.