DÉCRYPTAGE – Supplanted by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for the title of best player of the season, “Wemby” had the heart to set the record straight, this Monday in Oklahoma City.
Impressive, monstrous, brilliant… The superlatives are lacking to describe the performance carried out by Victor Wembanyama on Monday at the Paycom Center, on the floor of the reigning champions, during the highly anticipated Western Conference finals.
At 22 years old, in only his third season in the NBA and his first campaign in the playoffs, the Alien finished with 41 points on 14/25 shooting (1/2 from 3 points), 24 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks, and 1 steal in 49 minutes. His 3 turnovers can be forgiven. Especially considering he finished with a +/- of +16. A mammoth match. And above all, “his” Spurs handed OKC its first playoff loss this season (115-122 in double overtime).
Beyond his XXL statistics, the native of Chesnay directly contributed to over half of his team’s points (points or assists) in the last 15 minutes, 18 out of 31. This includes a (very) distant basket to equalize at 108-108.
