Newly Invented Stat Highlights Victor Wembanyama's Impact On the San Antonio Spurs

It's a scene that happened seemingly every game. An opposing player would drive to the hoop and seem to have a somewhat open layup or floater, only for Victor Wembanyama to take a step out from under the basket and present himself. Rather than kick the ball out, try and draw a foul, or take the semi-contested shot, the bewildered player would instead turn around, dribble away, and try again.

What was once an incredibly rare sight that demonstrated an offense collapsing became a routine, provided Wembanyama was under the basket. Teams suddenly became hesitant to drive in the paint against the San Antonio Spurs.

Players had good reason to turn away. Wembanyama's eight-foot wingspan is easily the longest in the league, and he led the league in both total blocks and blocks per game. His 10.0 block percentage was by far the best in the league, ahead of second-place Chet Holmgren's 7.3 percent mark.

Unfortunately, blocks are the best way to measure a player's ability to protect the rim. When players thought better before shooting over Wembanyama by the basket, it was hard to quantify. Fear is not a measurable stat.

Well, it wasn't a measurable stat, but thanks to Todd Whitehead of Synergy Basketball, we can put a number on Wembanyama's impact.

Wemby leads the league in HELLNAHs, which measures when a player dribbles to the basket and then dribbles away with only one nearby defender. It was best highlighted by the Memphis Grizzlies' pathetic attempt to run a three-on-one fastbreak against Wembanyama.

Not only has Wembanyama racked up 12 HELLNAHs, but he also leads the top 12 players in HELLNAHs per game, with 0.17. That might not seem like a lot, but the specific circumstances needed to record a HELLNAH make it so they are incredibly rare. More often than not, another defender is within ten feet of the hoop but might be guarding another man, not focused on the ball handler.

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While the NBA and award voters are unlikely to adopt the HELLNAH as a standard stat that they employ when voting for Defensive Player of the Year and other honors, it's interesting to know that Wembnayama's mere presence on the court has a somewhat measurable impact.