At least one Frenchman will be titled on Tuesday December 16, after only two months of competition. The NBA Cup, a tournament integrated into the regular season with the aim of boosting the interest of franchises and fans in the middle of the “winter trough”, revealed this Saturday evening the identity of its two finalists, after lively semi-finals.
The final clash will pit San Antonio against New York on the floor of Las Vegas, where four Frenchmen could make an appearance.
And then there were two…
SPURS. KNICKS. FOR THE CUP.@emirates NBA Cup Championship: Tuesday (12/16) at 8:30pm/et on Prime! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/QhMexeO7OO
— NBA (@NBA) December 14, 2025
Victor Wembanyama frustrates the Thunder coming off the bench
Undoubtedly the one whose involvement will be the most crucial, Victor Wembanyama returned to the field on Saturday evening against Oklahoma City in the semi-final, having been nursing a calf injury for almost a month. Although he only played around twenty minutes coming off the bench, unheard of in three years, “Wemby” weighed in on the decision upon his return, inflicting their first defeat on the Thunder since November 6.
VICTOR WEMBANYAMA TONIGHT
• 21 PTS, 9 REB, 2 BLKS, 6/11 FG, 21 MIN pic.twitter.com/o3quFg01BX
— Bala (@BalaPattySZN) December 14, 2025
Nothing seemed to be able to resist the defending champion OKC, which remained on 24 victories in 25 regular season games. And yet, OKC failed against the Texans of a very tall Victor Wembanyama, who came off the bench for the first time since… the 2021-2022 season at ASVEL.
The Frenchman finished with 22 points on 6/11 shots (and 9/12 shots), 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 interception and 2 blocks in 21 minutes, with an undeniable impact on the Spurs game. Already at +20 plus/minus at halftime after only seven minutes played, the interior scored a +21 at the buzzer, the best of the match.
WEMBY SWAT.
WEMBY FADEAWAY.HE WANTS THAT EMIRATES NBA CUP CHAMPIONSHIP BERTH!
Spurs lead in the 4Q… tap to watch: https://t.co/JSdNcvoFri pic.twitter.com/KJxkVH59Ex
— NBA (@NBA) December 14, 2025
In the opposite camp, Ousmane Dieng did not take part in the meeting, which Shai Gilgeous-Alexander still completed with 29 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists. An ordinary day at work for the latest Finals MVP, who wants “grow in defeat” as he indicated in the post-match conference.
New York and its three French people leave the East
San Antonio and Victor Wembanyama will meet in the final the team that did well in the Eastern Conference: the New York Knicks. The latter dominated the Orlando Magic (120-132) with a duo of Jalen Brunson (40 points and 8 assists) – Karl-Anthony Towns (29 points on 9/11 shooting, 8 rebounds) on big nights.
If Mohamed Diawara and Pacôme Dadiet did not touch the floor on Saturday evening, Guerschon Yabusele took part in the party coming off the bench. The last captain of the France team played four minutes, for 2 rebounds. The three New York tricolors will try to make their contribution on Tuesday to the building of the franchise’s potential first title in more than 50 years, which is long overdue by the fans.
As with Dieng at the Thunder, another Frenchman is on the verge of the final with the Magic. Noah Penda and his teammates will return to the daily routine of the regular season, after the former Manceau did not play in the confrontation against the Knicks. The 25 points of the Italian-American Paolo Banchero were not enough to play a bad trick on the players of Mike Brown, whose precepts are starting to infuse on his players.
