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Steph Curry Perfectly Summed Up Playing Against the Enigma That Is Victor Wembanyama

Some things just don't make sense. Playing against Wemby is one of them.

Tim Capurso

Wembanyama (left) and Curry (right) faced off in an entertaining 125-120 win for the Warriors over the Spurs.
Wembanyama (left) and Curry (right) faced off in an entertaining 125-120 win for the Warriors over the Spurs. / Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images
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If an elite basketball-playing alien touched down on Earth, it would look something like Victor Wembanyama. Standing 7'4" with freakish athleticism and the ability to move like a man a foot shorter, Wembanyama understandably presents significant challenges for the NBA, even to some of the league's best players.

Add future Hall of Famer and greatest shooter of all time Steph Curry to that list. In a showdown between two of the NBA's better teams and players, both Curry and Wembanyama starred, as the Warriors sharpshooter poured in a game-high 46 points while the Spurs big man racked up a triple double in Golden State’s 125–120 win.

But Curry's 46 points were far from easy. In fact, the Warriors star, who didn't shy away from attacking Wembanyama on offense, explained exactly how the shot-blocking Spurs star "challenged" him throughout the game.

"When you get those possessions, you try to just be decisive," Curry said of going after Wembanyama. "The only thing I know is, I was shooting short in the first half and then I tried to shoot a couple rainbow moon balls over him and I didn't make any of them. I am not worried about my arc moving forward because he challenges you in a way that doesn't make any sense.

"I saw it in the Olympics, but he always catches you off guard. He's gonna be around in this league for a long time doing that."

Curry and Wembanyama face off on epic possession during Spurs-Warriors

Curry had to go deep into his bag of tricks when he found himself face-to-face with Wembanyama during a possession in the third quarter. The Spurs big man ventured out to the perimeter to guard Curry with a freakish quickness, a gesture Curry responded to by pulling off some wizardry in the form of ball-handling moves.

The Warriors guard got a step on Wembanyama to the basket, but the Spurs big man recovered remarkably well, only for teammate Stephon Castle to be whistled for a foul. Curry drained the ensuing two free throws.

Round one went to Curry and the Warriors. Round two, an NBA Cup group play matchup on Friday, will be a chance for Wembanyama and San Antonio to get revenge.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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