Victor Wembanyama has already racked up plenty of memorable performances in his young NBA career, but Friday night’s clash with the Los Angeles Clippers pushed him to his limit.
The San Antonio Spurs erased a 25-point deficit to pull off a stunning 116-112 comeback win that had everyone in the arena buzzing.
The finish came down to the wire. Wembanyama swatted away a three-point attempt from Kawhi Leonard late in the fourth quarter, then sprinted the length of the floor for an uncontested dunk that gave San Antonio a 113-112 edge with 16 seconds remaining.
On the next possession, Nicolas Batum committed a costly turnover when his foot touched the sideline during the inbound pass. Stephon Castle put the game away by corralling his own missed free throw and converting a layup as time expired.
Victor Wembanyama exhausted, emotional after leading Spurs’ comeback
The French superstar was left emotional at the end of it. After the dust settled, Wembanyama did not hide how taxing the game had been on his body.
“I was about to pass out, from the first quarter … That’s close to being the hardest game of my life. It might not have looked like it, we played a hell of a game against the most physical team in the league yesterday,” Wembanyama told ESPN.