Coming off a win versus the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday, the Spurs looked to continue their win streak, facing off against the Chicago Bulls in the Windy City. After leading by eight after the first
quarter, the Spurs were outscored 72-55 in the second and third quarters. Trailing by double-digits in the fourth, Victor Wembanyama proceeded to put the squad on his back. He scored 18 of his 38 points in the fourth, including an unbelievable sequence where he drained a game-tying three, rejected former Spur Tre Jones at the rim, and proceeded to wave off Harrison Barnes’ screen attempt to isolate Nikola Vucevic. Wemby then broke Vucevic’s ankles and splashed a go-ahead stepback three. The Spurs stole all of the momentum and the victory, 121-117.
Victor Wembanyama had himself a monster game with 38 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, five blocks, and a steal. This Wemby performance has to remind fans of the explosive performance he had on opening night versus Dallas. After shooting two of nine from three-point land against New Orleans, he hit six of nine. If it weren’t for his 18 points in the fourth, the Spurs would have been dead in the water. With more performances like these, Wemby has the potential to put himself back at the top of MVP conversations.
Chicago is invited to the block party! Wemby’s rejection of Matas Buzelis marks his 95th straight game with a block!
Just two-way player stuff! Wemby stuffs Jones’s layup off the glass and drains the trailing three on the other end!
POSTER AND-ONE! Steph Castle and Wemby run the pick and roll and it results in a Wemby finish over Jalen Smith!
UNREAL SEQUENCE! Wemby ties the game with a trailing three, rejects Jones again, and puts Vucevic on skates for the go-ahead stepback three! When have you ever seen a seven-foot-five player dribble and shoot like a guard?!
De’Aaron Fox dropped 21 points, five assists, and four rebounds. A somewhat quiet 21 points, but also turning the ball over six times. It’s as if Castle’s turnovers from the games played so far transferred to Fox. However, it is only his second game back from injury, so Spurs fans should not worry. His quickness and scoring ability continue to make him difficult to guard.
Silky smooth! De’Aaron drives to the hole and finishes with a smooth finger roll!
Stephon Castle had another solid double-double: 19 points and 11 assists to go along with five rebounds, three steals, and only one turnover! Even though this is game number two with a Fox/Castle backcourt, it has shown that Steph can playmake at an efficient rate playing the shooting guard position. His assists are up and his turnovers are down, and the reason may be because De’Aaron’s presence has taken a weight off his shoulders. Therefore, Steph is playing a less stressed but hyper-focused brand of basketball. This backcourt’s potential is at least top five.
Don’t do him like that, Steph! Steph pulls off a nasty hesitation-crossover move on Jones for the easy fastbreak layup!
Spin cycle activated! Steph takes the screen from Wemby and spins off of Kevin Huerter for the nice and simple finish!
Luke Kornet returned from injury and provided a huge spark in only 20 minutes: 16 points (6-6 FG), seven rebounds, two assists, and a block. Luke and Steph connected on multiple lobs, which highlights his ability to execute textbook pick-and-rolls. He has been a perfect plug-and-play player for the silver and black, and it’s only November. Also, the minutes with Wemby on the floor provide much-needed size in the interior, and he takes stress off Wemby on both ends.
Early in the fourth, it began to look scary and disappointing, but Wemby’s heroics and solid stops by the squad allowed them to escape Chicago with a dub. The Spurs are now 8-2, and look to stay toward the top of the standings with a loaded Western Conference. Devin Vassell left the game early due to an injury, so keep an eye on the injury report to see if he plays against Golden State. The biggest takeaway from this clutch performance is that when Wemby plays like this with the team at full strength, this team has the potential to compete with the best of the best.
Finally, here are the full game highlights.
The Spurs return home to take on the Golden State Warriors this Wednesday at 7:00 P.M. (CST) on FDSN-SW.
