How San Antonio Spurs Have Stepped Up Without Victor Wembanyama

SAN ANTONIO — Most of the NBA world agreed the San Antonio Spurs would be a really good basketball team this season, provided Victor Wembanyama stayed healthy.

It turns out, that may have been vastly underselling it. The Spurs have established themselves among the best teams in the league, and for the last month, they’ve done it with their franchise cornerstone in street clothes. Because of that, they’re heading to Las Vegas for a date with the horrifyingly excellent 24-1 Oklahoma City Thunder, the winner advancing to the NBA Cup Final.

The Spurs have shifted into a higher gear before their biggest test yet, and they're likely to add Wembanyama back to the fold, as the forward is listed as PROBABLE for the matchup.

San Antonio came into the 7-foot-4 superstar’s third season with lofty expectations and a roster capable of meeting them.

Wembanyama got more specific than any Spur in recent memory, saying from the start that this team wants to skip over the Play-In Tournament entirely and earn a top-six seed and guaranteed playoff spot in a loaded Western Conference.

For a proud franchise and fanbase that hasn’t sniffed a playoff game since 2019, the leap back to relevance and contention would mean the world. Given the overall lack of playoff experience for the group, it placed an increased emphasis on succeeding in the NBA Cup, leaning into slightly jucier stakes for an opportunity to sharpen iron, test mettle.

That mindset drove the Spurs to the top of the completely stacked “Group of Death” with double-digit wins over the Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers.

Steph Curry needed 49 points to lead the Warriors past the Spurs for San Antonio’s only loss of the group stage. The bigger loss was Wembanyama, who suffered a calf strain that has kept him sidelined since Nov. 16. As much as he wanted to help his team get to Vegas, San Antonio wasn't going to gamble with his long-term health.

Dec 8, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard De'Aaron Fox (4) and forward/center Victor Wembanyama (1) share a moment against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

In his absence, the Spurs pulled off their biggest win since their last trip to the postseason in 2019, doubled down on the stakes, and did it again.

San Antonio first went to Denver for a date with Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets to decide the winner of West Group C, and left with a 139-136 victory. That earned it a game in Los Angeles where it dominated Luka Dončić, LeBron James and the Lakers in their house, winning an all-expenses-paid trip to Las Vegas with a chance to win some more.

These marquee wins on the road against top-tier Western Conference opponents are the most impressive performances in a 9-3 stretch since Wembanyama went down.

So, how are the Spurs reaching a new gear without their franchise cornerstone?

There aren’t too many statistical categories in the last month where San Antonio stands out. Its pace is fairly average, as is its rebounding and assist numbers.

The Spurs' defense hasn’t been great, landing 20th in the league, and without Wembanyama, they’re now a bottom-five shot-blocking team in the league. The Spurs, as a collective, have 51 blocks in the last 12 games; Wembanyama notched 43 himself in the first 12.

San Antonio does, however, boast the sixth-best offense in the NBA as it protects the ball and shoots it well. The team that drew valid concerns about 3-point marksmanship has managed 38 percent from beyond the arc since Wembanyama's injury — sixth best in the NBA.

The same team that has struggled with turnovers is only coughing it up 13 times per game in this stretch — good for fifth-best. With Wembanyama, it was 17 per game and fifth-worst.

The true beauty of what San Antonio is doing can only be fully appreciated by watching its teamwork and egalitarian approach. Understanding that each individual is playing his role so well that the whole is much greater than the sum of its parts.

It’s the kind of hoop that speaks directly to the souls of Spurs fans everywhere.

"We on our way to Vegas man... go Spurs go."

Step inside the postgame energy as the @spurs react to their victory over the Lakers and punching their ticket to Vegas 🏆 pic.twitter.com/uwMBWIdlgq
— NBA (@NBA) December 12, 2025

Wembanyama is one of the best players in the NBA already, and it makes sense why both media and the basketball-watching public pay more attention to 'The Alien' over to his human co-stars. But the individuals who make up the so-called supporting cast deserve to be seen as so much more than Wemby’s little helpers.

They are all mature, and smart, and talented in their own special ways.

How Spurs Stepped up Without Wembanyama

Luke Kornet is the poster boy for under-appreciated Spurs.

In fact, last year "The F5" named him the most underrated player in the NBA based on how much he impacts the game and how few people visit his player page.

The average NBA fan doesn’t spend much time thinking about Kornet, and many haven’t even heard of him. Ask any Boston Celtics fan, though, and they’ll tell you they watched him help Boston win its most recent title.

He averages 7.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game. He’s rostered in maybe 20 percent of fantasy leagues. His highlight reel is in the ‘Sickos Only’ section of the highlight store. He’s the guy who does his job.

Kornet’s best on-court skill is dirty work that befits an unsung hero: He’s arguably the best screen setter in the entire league. According to the NBA’s hustle stats, the 7-footer leads the league with 11.1 screen assist points per game. He gets 4.7 screen assists per game, second behind only Domantas Sabonis.

Dec 8, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; San Antonio Spurs center/forward Luke Kornet (7) waves to the crowd as heads in for halftime against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first half at Smoothie King Center. | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Those picks are tough and physical, but the main reason he’s so good is because he fully understands what his teammates need from him and delivers it over and over again. There’s nuance and persistence, there’s a profound understanding for how he can help his guys get open.

Consider the way he screens for De’Aaron Fox, the left-handed blur of an All-Star point guard. Fox is shooting 39 percent from deep and punishing defenders that go under, so some are trying to go over. Multiple times this season, Kornet has set a right screen and given the defender just enough space to make the mistake of going over it.

When that happens, Kornet pivots back toward the defender, Fox zips back to his dominant side, and the defender runs into a brick wall.

In the NBA Cup Quarterfinal against the Lakers, when Kornet saw his defender sagging, he incessantly set picks on the perimeter, often a handful on the same possession.

He’d go to the top of the key and set a pick for a ball-handler like Fox or Stephon Castle, then turn and set a screen to give that ball-handler an open shooter to pass to like Devin Vassell or Julian Champagnie, then turn and give that shooter a screen to dribble past before finally rolling to the rim himself.

On one play, he screened for standout rookie Dylan Harper, who drove left and hesitated while Kornet rolled hard past Deandre Ayton. Harper snatched it back and drove right, and Kornet stopped where he was. Harper’s defender, unaware of the traffic jam he was backing into, bumped into Ayton who got tangled with Kornet as Harper slid past for a silky And-1.

SMOOTH OPERATOR 🔥

📺 NBA on Prime pic.twitter.com/z5GFFbaNnv
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) December 11, 2025

Kornet put on a clinic on how to play as an old-school bruising big man, as he does every single night he’s on the floor. In a league where bigs like Brook Lopez have extended their careers and leveled up their game by adding a reliable 3-point shot, Kornet went the opposite direction.

In his first four seasons he attempted 439 triples, and in the past four, he’s only tried 22.

It turns out the big man is far more effective when he’s close to the basket. Sixty-two of his 71 field goal attempts this year have come within 5 feet of the basket, where’s he’s converting 69 percent of the time. Defining and committing to his role is the main reason that Kornet was able to survive in the NBA in the first place.

“You get a lot of positive reinforcement being a good basketball player," Kornet said just after Wembanyama was sidelined, "when, really, the game is about: 'How does your team do and what’s the score at the end of the game?' (It's about) being accountable to that, and not fighting for any kind of individual recognition."

James got up for a loud, preposterous dunk over Kornet in the NBA Cup Quarterfinal. Kornet’s chasedown block a few moments later didn’t go viral, yet Kornet’s team won the game by 13.

In the postgame interview, Fox sported a T-shirt with a rare image of Kornet in the spotlight. The big man saved the game in Orlando a week before when he came from the 3-point line to block Franz Wagner’s last-second layup, and after sending it into the stands he struck a Usain Bolt pose to celebrate not his individual highlight, but the team win.

De'Aaron Fox: Big Luke Kornet fan 👕 pic.twitter.com/SaoMUFgPMv
— NBA (@NBA) December 11, 2025

Fox is playing like an All-Star, too, averaging 25 points and 6.5 assists while shooting 48 percent from the floor and 40.5 percent from 3 in the last month. He thrives off of Kornet’s screens, but he can get to the cup on his own, and he isn’t the only one.

Castle and Harper still need to dial in their distance shooting, but the youngsters possess so much downhill playmaking ability that they can swing or even take control of games.

Harper scored 22 points against the Pelicans, including the winning floater, and in the next game against the Lakers, Castle led the Spurs with 30 points and a dagger stepback 3 to punch their ticket to Vegas.

Many questioned the fit between those three slashing playmakers, but it’s all working out. Part of it comes down to staggering them to make sure there’s always skill on the floor. When they overlap, there exists no ego and no selfishness, only feeding the hot hand and finding the open shots.

Dec 2, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Dylan Harper (2) is surrounded by teammates after a victory over the Memphis Grizzlies at Frost Bank Center. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

It helps to surround those guys with shooters. Champagnie, Vassell, and Harrison Barnes are attempting 20 3s per game combined and hitting over 40 percent since Wembanyama's injury. Barnes and Vassell have each notched a game in the last few weeks with 30-plus points to lead the Spurs in scoring, and Champagnie has been crashing the glass and logged three double-doubles in a row.

Rookie Carter Bryant is showcasing his ridiculous athleticism in limited minutes, with tremendous bounce and some confident shooting of late. When rookie David Jones Garcia helped the shorthanded Spurs secure a win over the Hawks in late November, his teammates embraced him with pure joy.

One of the only question marks in the rotation regards backup big man minutes, and that may become moot when Wembanyama returns. Jeremy Sochan has struggled on offense, and Kelly Olynyk has struggled on defense, with Olynyk getting more minutes recently. Even with their struggles, there are going to be games and situations that call for each of their respective skillsets.

The Spurs team are full of players who know their role and play with energy and love for their teammates. The poster boy for such joy is obvious.

Keldon Johnson is playing some of the best basketball of his entire career, and it’s because he knows his job and commits to it. He has removed the mid-range shot from his diet, and almost two-thirds of his attempts come within 8 feet of the hoop where he’s hitting almost 68 percent. His deep shot has also ticked up to 37.5 percent since Wembanyama's injury.

None of that is what endears Keldon so much to teammates, fans and even the most curmudgeonly reporters. The longest-tenured Spur is Chief Good Vibes Officer, the glue, the unique and hilarious heart of the Spurs. He is the D.J. blasting Mariah Carey, Miley Cyrus or, most recently, Vanessa Carlton pregame.

On San Antonio's NBA Cup run, the forward spoke about wanting to the prize money so Jones Garcia could splurge on a car. He also expressed a desire to own a llama and some add new sheep to Longhorn Ranch.

“Me and my family and my best friends," he began with a big, toothy smile, "we all work together. We the family, we the farmhands."

Mitch Johnson deserves a lot of credit for putting the pieces together in his first full season relieving Gregg Popovich, especially given the injuries to Wembanyama, Fox, Harper and Castle. After the win in Los Angeles, it looked like Wembanyama was telling him something along those lines.

Wembanyama wants to be out there when the Spurs take their best shot at the Thunder in one of the biggest games of the NBA season so far. In all likelihood, he will be. And he’ll be re-integrating with a special group of guys who are playing for each other and firing on all cylinders.