How Spurs Performed After Victor Wembanyama Suffered Concussion vs. Blazers

How did San Antonio play without its enormous star?

Victor Wembanyama left Game 2 and entered concussion protocol on Tuesday night. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

After a wonderful playoff debut in Game 1, Victor Wembanyama’s second career playoff game came to a sudden end in the first half.

The Spurs star, battling to lead San Antonio to a 2–0 lead over the Trail Blazers, was locked in a post battle against Jrue Holiday when he took an unexpected and scary fall to the floor. Wemby remained down for several moments after falling and wound up surrounded by concerned teammates and staff. He was able to get up under his own power but ran right to the locker room.

Shortly thereafter, the team announced Wembanyama had entered concussion protocol and was ruled out for the rest of Game 2.

Replay of the superstar’s fall show he fell right on his face.

Victor Wembanyama (concussion protocol) is OUT for the remainder of the game after hitting his head on the court. pic.twitter.com/qP8tAf6osN

— NBA on NBC and Peacock (@NBAonNBC) April 22, 2026

Prior to exiting Wembanyama had five points, four rebounds, one assist and one block in 12 minutes on the court. Portland is a talented defensive team and entirely dedicated to making life as difficult as possible for the star big man. But nobody wanted to see him leave the game under these circumstances.

What Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said about Wembanyama’s injury status

After the game, Spurs coach Mitch Johnson revealed his young star had, indeed, suffered a concussion.

“He has a concussion, he’s in the protocol,” Johnson told reporters. “Obviously we’ll take the proper and appropriate steps.”

Per the NBA’s rules, players who enter concussion protocol cannot return within 48 hours. But after that, once they clear protocol, they’re good to go. With the next game on Friday a return for Wembanyama is possible, technically speaking.

How important is it for the superstar big man to get back as soon as possible? We can figure that out by examining how the Spurs played without Wemby on Tuesday night.

How Spurs played without Wembanyama in Game 2

With Victor Wembanyama out for most of Game 2, Luke Kornet was the man in the middle for the bulk of the Spurs’ loss to the Trail Blazers. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

As evidenced by the result, San Antonio did not play well enough without Wembanyama. The Spurs were absolutely in position to win this game but let go of the rope in the fourth quarter and let the victory slip through their fingers.

Wembanyama’s presence is irreplaceable on both ends and the Spurs felt that, especially defensively, and especially at the end of this very close game. San Antonio was up 14 with eight and a half minutes to go before letting the Blazers go on a huge run to get right back into it. Wemby’s absence in the paint was obvious throughout and particularly on the biggest basket of the night—a Deni Avdija alley-oop to Robert Williams III with just over 10 seconds remaining. Portland’s All-Star drove into the paint and tossed the oop with Spurs backup center Luke Kornet directly in his face.

It’s not hard to envision that going a lot differently with Wembanyama’s gigantic wingspan in place of Kornet.

DENI TO ROBERT WILLIAMS III 💥

BLAZERS 106
SPURS 103

5.2 TO PLAY! pic.twitter.com/UbKwnSpRte

— NBA (@NBA) April 22, 2026

Moreover, San Antonio’s offensive warts really came to light without Wembanyama out there to soothe things over. The Spurs only scored 46 points in the second half and couldn’t buy a bucket down the stretch. Wemby often acts as a get-out-of-jail free card on that end where San Antonio can just toss him the ball, hope he makes something happen and watch as he does just that. Without him, De’Aaron Fox, Devin Vassel and Stephon Castle couldn’t score when it really counted.

The most positive takeaway for San Antonio: Kornet was ready to step up. The veteran big man signed a $40 million contract in free agency for this exact contingency and delivered to the best of his abilities; the Spurs outscored the Blazers by 11 in his 28 minutes. The problems caused by Wembanyama’s absence are wide-ranging but San Antonio does not have a backup center issue, at least.

The Spurs can now only hope that Wembanyama won’t be out for too long. As with most teams they only go as far as their superstar can take them. In theory a 60-win two-seed should be able to be a seven-seed even without their best player but San Antonio just proved that’s no sure thing.

Game 3 will be in Portland on Friday night. If Wemby can’t go, the Blazers will enter the pivotal contest with tons of confidence after tonight’s exciting win.

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