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Victor Wembanyama visited NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston last offseason.<\/p>\n
Editor\u2019s Note: Read more NBA coverage from The Athletic\u00a0here<\/a>. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its teams.\u00a0<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n As NASA\u2019s Artemis II moon mission launched Wednesday to send astronauts into lunar orbit for the first time in over 50 years, the crew on board received a parting message from San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama.<\/p>\n Wembanyama was part of a NASA live stream that included Hollywood stars Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Gosling, among others, wishing the astronauts well on the Artemis II mission to the moon.<\/p>\n \u201cHey, I\u2019m Victor Wembanyama, and I play basketball in the NBA,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I\u2019m not only interested in shooting hoops. I\u2019m also interested in shooting stars, dark matter, and all other types of astronomical phenomena. And to Artemis II astronauts who are shooting for the moon, I wish them good luck and God speed.\u201d<\/p>\n Wembanyama has shown interest in aeronautical science and cosmology, visiting NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston last offseason.<\/p>\n \u201cMy favorite (activity of the summer) was going to NASA and checking out all the stuff I\u2019m passionate about from the inside,\u201d he said on media day in September. \u201cMy favorite aspect, so there (were) a few, but meeting astronauts that either have been to space or are going to and legends amongst them.\u201d<\/p>\n From the court to the cosmos, Wemby\u2019s got game \ud83c\udfc0\ud83d\ude80<\/p>\n NBA star @Wemby<\/a>, Victor Wembanyama stopped by NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center for a tour that included the Vehicle Mockup Facility, Mission Control, and a ride in a lunar rover.<\/p>\n Whether it\u2019s dominating the paint or geeking out\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/EpfrgfgzHc<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NASA’s Johnson Space Center (@NASA_Johnson) August 29, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Wembanyama recalled meeting Peggy Whitson, who has the most spacewalk time of any American. He also visited the offices of space suit company Axiom, and he described feeling like a kid seeing replicas of the spacecraft that always fascinated him.<\/p>\n The Spurs All-Star chose to receive his 2024 Rookie of the Year award at Scobee Education Center & Planetarium at San Antonio College while\u00a0watching a presentation on dark matter. He spoke of its enigmatic mystery, something that has become a component of his story as he rapidly becomes a public figure of consequence.<\/p>\n \u201cIts presence inside galaxies is five times higher than regular seeable matter, so it\u2019s a huge mystery,\u201d he said. \u201cWe can\u2019t see it. We can\u2019t observe it, but we can observe its influence. This is dark matter. Very sci-fi.\u201d<\/p>\n At 7-foot-4, Wembanyama, nicknamed \u201cThe Alien,\u201d stands closer to the cosmos than almost anyone on earth. He has spent his youth learning mindfulness and understanding something bigger than himself, as big as he is. That has long been one of NASA\u2019s missions, to help the public gain perspective on our place in the solar system and universe. Wembanyama spent his off day following the All-Star game visiting the Northern Lights in Alaska. His fascination with the world beyond ours runs deep.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Jared Weiss<\/a>\u00a0is a staff writer covering the San Antonio Spurs and Victor Wembanyama for The Athletic. He has covered the Celtics since 2011, co-founding CLNS Media Network while in college before covering the team for SB Nation\u2019s CelticsBlog and USA Today. Before coming to The Athletic, Weiss spent a decade working for the government, primarily as a compliance bank regulator.\u00a0Follow Jared on Twitter\u00a0@JaredWeissNBA<\/a><\/p>\n