If you buy a ticket to watch Victor Wembanyama, there’s a good chance you’re going to get your money’s worth.
Spurs fans got their money’s worth on Sunday in San Antonio.
The Spurs rolled to a 145-120 win over the Western Conference rival Houston Rockets to put further distance between themselves and the field for second place in the West. Wembanyama put together another otherworldly stat line and highlight reel in the process.
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He got the highlight reel started by spiking a soft Tari Eason layup attempt into the baseline stands.
Then, with a chance to extend a Spurs lead before halftime, Wembanyama took a trailing pass from Dylan Harper in transition, pump-faked from near the logo and stepped up for a buzzer-beating 3.
That bucket extended San Antonio’s lead to 69-57.
But he saved his best stuff for the third quarter. With San Antonio starting to pull away, Wembanyama took an outlet pass in transition and got a full head of steam as he dribbled over halfcourt.
From there, he Euro-stepped into the paint through four Rockets defenders, including 6-foot-11 Kevin Durant and 6-foot-11 Alperen Şengün, all of whom were helpless to stop him. Wembanyama finished move with reverse dunk, sending each of his would-be defenders walking in the other direction with his head down.
He picked up a foul on Reed Sheppard in the process and completed the sequence with an and-1 free throw.
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Then, for good measure, Wembanyama added another highlight-reel block, this one at Clint Capela’s expense.
Capela, who’s 6-foot-10, got the ball deep in the post and went up for what looked initially like a two-handed dunk attempt. But Wembanyama, standing behind him, stuffed the shot before it got to the rim. Wembanyama didn’t even have to jump.
In the end, it added up to 29 points, 8 rebounds, 4 blocks and 2 steals for Wembanyama. He shot 9 of 13 from the field, 9 of 10 from the line and 2 of 5 from 3.
And the Spurs now stand seven games ahead of the third-place Timberwolves, 7.5 games ahead of the Rockets and eight games ahead the Nuggets and Lakers in the Western Conference Standings.
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Only Thunder, whose lead in the West San Antonio cut to 2.5 games Sunday night, have a better record in the NBA. And the Spurs beat them four times in five matchups this season.
The Spurs are putting on a great show with Wembanyama as the featured act. And they’re doing a lot of winning along the way.