After two home games, Victor Wembanyama discovered the concept of traveling to the NBA this evening. On the Los Angeles side to face the Clippers, the Spurs took a nasty beating. The French giant had a rather complicated evening, with only 11 points and 5 rebounds.
Two matches against the two Texan teams, at home: a very favorable context to start a rookie season in the NBA, and encouraging statistical lines. Victor Wembanyama’s first steps in the United States were relatively good, and so the next step was moving. A complicated move on paper for Spurs. The Clippers – in full, we agree – have a formidable team, built to play for the title. Strong elements in each position, enough to give a San Antonio team still in the training phase a lot of difficulty.
So much for the very generalized context. Now, let’s move on to the match and let’s not be afraid of words: the Spurs ate a real beating. Too effective, too established, too strong… the Clippers did not use their talent to knock out the Spurs who did not have as much freedom as in the first two matches. The first to pay the price? Victor Wembanyama, who was nevertheless able to measure all the hype that his name causes even far from Texas. Well defended, the Frenchman struggled to find the circle and his first half was marked by imprecision. He returns to the locker room with only 4 small points scored and a shot blocked by Nicolas Batum, his compatriot. On a collective level, everything is difficult. 19 points difference in favor of the locals at the break, a score which cannot be contested.
that’s why Batum’s in. pic.twitter.com/1fpTmirlqP
— Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20) October 30, 2023
In the second half, we still noticed improvement: the gap was made, the Clippers let go a little and involved their rotation players more intensively. Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Russell Westbrook, Ivica Zubac and Robert Covington did their job and ensured the victory, deserved rest. The pace drops, Wemby enjoys a little more freedom and takes the opportunity to find the circle and recover free throws. The Spurs had a lot of trouble serving their rookie in the paint, and mostly sailed wide to find outside shots. Come on, there are still some highlights for our Frenchie!
.@Tre3Jones ⬆️@wemby ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/85YFwaAD7X
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) October 30, 2023
A little analysis? The Clippers’ very physically strong racket made a considerable mess of the Spurs’ game plan. At the start of the season, nothing worrying on a collective or individual level for Wembanyama, who must however get used to playing against colossi much stronger than him in the paint. When this dissuasive interior presence is coupled with great defensive mobility on the wing, things become very complicated and we still regret that Gregg Popovich did not insist that Wemby be more used in the post in certain preferential positions… don’t if only to make him work. In the end, it gives a loss of 40 points (123-83) and a new learning phase for Wemby, those of very dirty blow-outs. Next match in Phoenix, on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday (3 a.m.) and on national television. Enough to boost the young crack!
2023-10-30 03:40:00
#Victor #Wembanyama #Spurs #corrected #Clippers
