San Antonio Spurs rookie phenom Victor Wembanyama was unstoppable with his first NBA victory within the reach of his 8-foot wingspan.
Wembanyama scored the tying goal with 20 seconds left in regulation time, the opening basket in overtime, and finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds to help the Spurs beat the Houston Rockets 126-122 on Friday night.
“I really, really love winning,” Wembanyama said. “This is what I love most in life. So of course it felt great. Coming back to the locker room, (coach Gregg Popovich) acknowledged that this was my first-ever NBA win. It just made me proud, proud of myself. Of course it’s only one win and there are many more to come and many more tough matches.”
Wembanyama had 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks – two on Jabari Smith Jr on one late possession – in the second half and in overtime. He had four rebounds in overtime to help San Antonio seal the victory.
“That was awesome,” Spurs center Zach Collins said. “He was dominant. Great moves. He has his body in him all night.”
Devin Vassell scored 25 points and Keldon Johnson added 20 for the Spurs, who lost to Dallas in Wembanyama’s long-awaited debut on Wednesday and fell behind late in this game before the No. 1 pick helped them pull it out.
Wembanyama’s layup, while defended by Smith, tied the score at 111 and his jumper sent San Antonio on a 6-0 run to start OT.
“It’s hard,” Smith said. “He’s tall and athletic. Just try to do what you can, stay at the front and try not to make a mistake.
Houston center Alperen Sengun scored 25 points, Fred VanVleet added 24 and Jalen Green had 22. The Rockets have dropped their first two games of the season.
The teams posted the worst record in the Western Conference last season at 22-60 and tied with Detroit for the top lottery odds. The Spurs won out to get the No. 1 pick and Wembanyama, while the Rockets selected Amen Thompson fourth.
Wembanyama went 7 for 19 from the field, including three resounding dunks. He also had back-to-back blocks on the same possession with two minutes left and Houston led 107-104. Wembanyama met Smith at the rim to block a dunk attempt and then rushed back onto the court to block Smith’s floater.
The Spurs bridged the third and fourth quarters with an 8-0 run after trailing by 10 points. San Antonio committed seven turnovers in the third quarter and was outscored 31-24 in that period.
“We showed some composure and some not so composed,” Popovich said. “That is a work in progress. The best part about it was that they were persistent. We got better and better as we adapted to their physicality. The ball was moving better, our defense improved a little bit, but we were pretty normal for about two and a half to three quarters.”
Wembanyama had five points in the first three minutes after a slow start in his NBA debut.
Wembanyama made his first field goal attempt, a 10-foot fadeaway jumper over Dillon Brooks on the game’s opening possession. After initially missing the 2.30 meter tall forward running behind the defence, Johnson threw the ball into a crowd and Wembanyama grabbed it and threw it downfield.
Wembanyama would score just one more point in the first half as he went 2 for 10 from the field.
Although Wembanyama finished on a high note, it didn’t stop him from earning his first in-game tirade from Popovich in the fourth quarter.
“I forgot a play,” Wembanyama said, laughing. “Actually forgot one play we added today. It’s a rookie mistake. It was 100% legit that he yelled at me. After the match I apologized.”