Victor Wembanyama's injury return sparks Spurs' 4th quarter surge vs. Warriors
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Victor Wembanyama scored nearly half of his game-high 25 points in the fourth quarter as the San Antonio Spurs erased a 17-point late third-quarter deficit to beat Stephen Curry and a Golden State Warriors team that sits atop the Western Conference 104-94.
In his first game back after missing three straight with a knee contusion, the top overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft went 4-for-13 from three-point range for the night in shooting 9-for-21 overall. But, when the final period came around, so did his best basketball.
“Yeah, it’s a switch I’m trying to flip on demand.”
Wemby scored 12 points in the frame and also finished the contest with nine assists and seven rebounds.
Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama doesn’t back down
Chris Paul is 17 games into his partnership with the 7-foot-5 phenom. Already, he sees characteristics he hasn’t witnessed often through his now 20 seasons in the NBA.
“Vic’s confidence never wavers. And it’s so dope to see. I’ve played for a long time and you see guys that might miss two and then pass up the next one.”
“That’s another thing about a guy who’s put in the work. He’s confident,” Paul told ClutchPoints. “He know the next one’s going in and that’s big to to continue to shoot it. The plays he made were all winning plays.”
It’s no coincidence that San Antonio’s rally coincided with when the 20-year-old center raised his game.
“I did find my rhythm physically because it was a little hard to come back in terms of conditioning in the first half, but the second half I was feeling really good,” the French big man admitted.
The Silver and Black found themselves down 81-64 with 1:55 left in the third quarter.
“Being there when my team needs but also not doing too much. It’s a balance thing you’ve got to learn as an NBA player because there’s a lot of games, lots of tight games,” Wemanyama revealed.
ClutchPoints asked the Spurs leading scorer (Wemby’s averaging 22.7 points per outing) if the balance he seeks tilts toward his being more aggressive in the fourth quarter.
Asked #VictorWembanyama if the #Spurs offensive balance he seeks throughout most of a contest gives way in the fourth quarter of a close game…
"…in the fourth quarter, this is when we have to come back to the more simple things…"
Full answer #GoSpursGo#PorVidapic.twitter.com/sxIRqDYGj3
— Hector Ledesma (@HectorLedesmaTV) November 24, 2024
“During the game, we’re trying to have that attitude too. During the game, it’s also time to try to use a broad variety of weapons but, surprisingly, in the fourth quarter, this is when we have to come back to the more simple things: strong catches, quick moves because we’ve got to go back to our basics,” last season’s Rookie of the Year answered.
Wembyanyama outscored Warriors future Hall-of-Famer Steph Curry 25-14 for the night, including 15-3 in the decisive final period.
“This is what every team does and this is what they tried to do too, our opponent,” Wemby said, alluding to Golden State’s desire to get Curry going in that fourth quarter.
“Yeah, I’d say surprisingly, there’s more simple things we’ve got to do in the fourth.”
It doesn’t get much simpler for the Spurs than putting the ball in their best player’s hands – a player who seemingly makes the league notice with every game he plays. It’s as he said when beginning to answer Clutchpoints’ question about looking to elevate his game when it matters most.
“This is for sure.”
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