Victor Wembanyama Humble About First Summer League Game Struggles

Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama had nearly 18,000 eyes on him inside of a sold out Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of UNLV on Friday night.

Wembanyama’s Spurs edged Brandon Miller and the Hornets 76–68 in the opening game of Las Vegas Summer League action, but the conversation after the game was dominated by the up-and-down performance of the Spurs rookie.

Wembanyama had a rough shooting night, finishing 2-for-13 from the field with nine points. He did have five blocks, eight rebounds and three assists though, as he found a way to impact the game despite his lack of scoring on Friday.

“It was special,” Wembanyama told reporters after the game. “It was really special to wear that jersey for the first time. It’s really an honor. Overall, I’m glad we won this game. There’s no better way to start for your premiere. Honestly, I didn’t really know what I was doing on the court tonight. I’m trying to learn for next game.”

Not to be an excuse-maker for Wembanyama, but the last couple weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind. His season ended in France and he immediately came to the United States to be selected with the first pick in the NBA draft. He then had post-draft media obligations as he adapted to the United States and the Spurs organization. He stayed in San Antonio to workout with some of the Spurs players while the summer league roster played two games in the California Classic last week. 

Additionally, he admitted to The Associated Press on Thursday that he was working on getting back into shape since off-court obligations had taken his time over basketball over the last two weeks, and he reiterated his conditioning when speaking with reporters after the game on Friday.

“I think there’s a lot of conditioning to do,” Wembanyama said. “Especially with our play style, we run a lot. It’s really exhausting. Even though it was 40 minutes tonight, when I subbed out, I was always tired and exhausted. So I think there’s a lot of conditioning to do.”

Wembanyama is not expected to play all of San Antonio’s summer league games, but he may suit up on Sunday night when the Spurs take on the Trail Blazers in their second game. Portland lost to Houston on Friday night, as No. 3 pick Scoot Henderson shined in his debut before leaving the game with a shoulder injury.