Young prodigy Victor Wembanyama did not participate in the match lost by the San Antonio Spurs against the Dallas Mavericks (144-119) on Saturday in the NBA, after aggravating the pain in his right ankle during the warm-up.
Young prodigy Victor Wembanyama did not participate in the match lost by the San Antonio Spurs against the Dallas Mavericks (144-119) on Saturday in the NBA, after aggravating the pain in his right ankle during the warm-up. The French giant (2.24m) was warming up on the floor of the American Airlines Center before the match. After scoring a basket, he tripped on the foot of a Mavs ball boy who was standing on the baseline, spraining his ankle. Frustrated, Wembanyama returned to the locker room.
His ankle was taped and he returned to the floor intending to play, but the Spurs later announced he would not play the game. The rookie, No. 1 in the draft, had already missed the match against the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday due to pain in the same ankle, before playing 22 minutes against Chicago on Thursday, giving a poor performance (7 points, 5 rebounds).
Spurs in bad shape
Before the game against the Mavs, coach Gregg Popovich announced that Wembanyama would not play the entire game. “Wemby” has only missed three games this season, having withdrawn on December 1, during a match against the Pelicans due to right hip pain. Dead last in the Western Conference (4 wins, 24 losses), the Spurs probably do not want to take any risks with their young star.
Wembanyama presents very good individual statistics for a beginner (18.5 points, 10.7 rebounds and 3 blocks on average), but he continues defeats with Spurs who are often clumsy and regularly swept aside by their opponents.