Coming off an opening NBA Cup win against the Sacramento Kings, the Spurs faced a SEGABABA against the Portland Trail Blazers. After a sluggish first quarter, the Spurs, behind by 42 points in the second quarter, built their two-point lead to 15 at halftime. In the third, the Spurs drove the nail in the coffin, outscoring the Blazers 45-27 and ballooning their lead to 33 heading into the fourth. The Blazers simply could not stop the ball movement and three-point barrage by the silver and black, as
the Spurs ultimately won 125-103.
Victor Wembanyama continues his early MVP campaign with another efficient high-scoring game of 29 points (9-13 FG, 3-6 3PT, 8-9 FT), seven rebounds, three assists, a block, and a steal. Despite only playing 24 minutes and not being as big a focal point of the offense as he was against Dallas and Sacramento, Wemby once again demonstrated how unguardable he truly is. After starting the season shooting under 30% from three, Wemby is now shooting 7-12 (58%) from three in his last two games.
Since he’s shown he can shoot threes, Donovan Clingan steps out to guard him but immediately gets beat by Wemby on the drive to the basket. All Toumani Camara can do is go straight up, but against a seven-foot-four (he’s definitely taller) alien, it’s almost pointless.
The bulk of Wemby’s scoring comes from inside the paint. He is dunking the ball more than any other player in the league and is even leading other TEAMS in total dunks. Where do most of his dunks come from? Lobs, of course.
The most unguardable lob threat in the league, all his teammates have to do is just throw it up above the rim to where only Wemby can grab it. Sometimes, defenders are in the way. This time, Clingan was unfortunately one of his victims.
Devin Vassell dropped another solid game with 15 points, three assists, two rebounds, and two steals. His defense somehow outshone his shooting from three. His agility and lateral movement allow him to stay in front of multiple guards and forwards. He also deflected multiple passes, and one of them turned into a steal and layup all by himself.
Stephon Castle dropped 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and a block. Castle, like Vassell, played like a Swiss Army knife against the Blazers. He crashed the glass, dished out dimes, and had himself some highlight buckets. The hustle play of the game was him somehow tight-roping the sideline and dishing out to an open Vassell for the corner three.
Poor Clingan. De’Aaron Fox and Castle run a beautiful DHO that results in a posterizing alley-oop with Castle dunking on his former college teammate.
Although they didn’t shoot 50% from three this game, they still drained 17 compared to Portland’s nine. For most Spurs fans, that third-quarter explosion showed that when everyone is bought in and focused within the flow of the offense, this team can put teams away early. The communication also reached the defense, as they held the Blazers to 76 points after 36 minutes (before garbage time). Next week, the Spurs face the Suns, Bulls, Warriors, & Jazz.
Finally, here are the full game highlights.
The Spurs’ early road trip continues with a visit to the Mortgage Matchup Center, the home of the Phoenix Suns, this Monday at 8:00 P.M. (CST) on DAZN.
