Bedard, Wembanyama meet, discuss life as No. 1 draft picks in respective leagues 

CHICAGO -- Connor Bedard and Victor Wembanyama were discussing why they chose their respective numbers.

Wembanyama said he took No. 1 partially because the San Antonio Spurs selected him with that pick at the 2023 NBA Draft. Bedard, the No. 1 selection by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2023 NHL Draft, said he chose No. 98 because “nobody had it in the NHL at the time.” 

Wembanyama told Bedard, “The goal is to make that number legendary, you know. People, when they see No. 98, they’ll think of you.”

Bedard and Wembanyama, who each could very well end up legendary in his sport, got together last month in Chicago to talk about the expectations heaped upon them, what it was like to be taken No. 1, playing against their idols and much more.

Bedard and Wembanyama met at Fifth Third Arena, the Blackhawks practice facility, for a talk, a friendly off-ice contest and a tour of the facilities Dec. 20, the night before Wembanyama and the Spurs played the Chicago Bulls at United Center. They discussed their excitement leading up to their respective drafts, their home openers and their experiences in hockey and basketball.

NHL Studios was there to capture the entire meeting.

“I was telling them, that’s maybe the most excited I’ve been for an interview in a little bit,” Bedard said with a laugh following the interview. “No, it was a lot of fun. It’s rare, we were talking about it, that you get someone in the same situation and his is mine times 100, just with how big everything is in the NBA. So it was pretty cool just to hear his input on it and what he thinks. Obviously, a special player and cool to meet him.”

Bedard, a center whom the Blackhawks announced Monday will be out at least six more weeks with a fractured jaw he sustained in a 4-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Jan. 5, leads Chicago and all NHL rookies with 33 points (15 goals, 18 assists) in 39 games. Wembanyama, a forward/center, leads the Spurs and NBA rookies with averages of 20.4 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game. 

Bedard and Wembanyama are expected to help their respective franchises return to success. The Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 1934, 1938, 1961, 2010, 2013 and 2015; the Spurs won the NBA championship in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014.

Wembanyama, who turned 20 on Jan. 4, grew up in France and became the first French player and second European player to be drafted No. 1 in the NBA (Andrea Bargnani, 2006, Toronto Raptors). 

“For me, like, in France, when we’re really young, it’s sometimes almost forbidden to dream about the NBA because almost nobody makes it,” Wembanyama said. 

Bedard, 18, said everyone in Canada “wants to play in the NHL, but when you’re young, being in the NBA is kind of a fantasy.”

Bedard is considered the NHL’s next generational player and the heir to Connor McDavid, who was selected No. 1 by the Edmonton Oilers in the 2015 NHL Draft and who has won the Hart Trophy as the League’s most valuable player three times (2017, 2021 and 2023) and the Art Ross Trophy for leading the NHL in points five times (2016-17, 2017-18, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23).

One of the highlights of the meeting was Wembanyama telling Bedard the story of scoring a goalie goal while playing floor hockey in third grade. 

Bedard told Wembanyama he tried basketball during grades 3-7 and “wasn’t very good,” but that he was “pretty good” at hockey. 

After their chat, Bedard and Wembanyama traded jerseys and headed upstairs for a friendly slap shot contest. The 7-foot-4 Wembanyama used the stick of Blackhawks defenseman Louis Crevier, who is 6-8. 

“For the first time it was pretty good,” Bedard said of Wembanyama’s shot. “It’s hard when you’ve never done something. But it’s funny, obviously seeing him dominate the NBA and then try to shoot a puck. That’s always fun.”

Bedard was hoping to compare jump shots with Wembanyama, but that didn’t happen.

“That was my first question: ‘Are we playing H-O-R-S-E or something like that?’” Bedard said. “That would’ve been a lot of fun. But obviously no court here.”