Welcome to Week in Review: a Monday feature that looks back at the week that was for the San Antonio Spurs, takes a look at the week ahead, and more. Enjoy!
Week 1: It wasn’t the ideal start to the season for the defending Western Conference Finals champions. With Victor Wembanyama not looking like himself (among other issues), they got throttled at home by a fleetingly healthy Thunder squad and lost a heartbreaker in Austin to the Rockets before finally getting their first win of the season against
a depleted Mavs team in Dallas.
Week #: 4-2 (3-0, 6th in West)
130-113 win vs. Sacramento Kings
There may be no better team to “get right” against than the Kings, and the Spurs made quick work of the annual cellar dwellers (which was a good thing considering it was the first night of a back-to-back). Wemby began his bounce-back by dominating the paint on his way to 29 points, and Julian Champagnie tied his franchise record for three-pointers in a half with 8 in the first.
117-111 OT win at Utah Jazz
The Spurs looked lethargic the next night against a shorthanded Jazz team, although they had the excuse of a rest disadvantage and not having time to acclimate to the elevation change. Regardless, after enduring another big game from noted Spurs killer Keyonte George, they woke up and dominated in overtime, with Devin Vassell hitting several key shots down the stretch and Wemby dominating his way to 36 points, including finally hitting some threes.
121-111 win vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
Not to be outdone, Geralt if Rivia Wemby took it another step further on Halloween night with 43 points and 6 blocks against a Timberwolves squad that was missing Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert (not that the latter has proven to a Wemby stopper). As with all four wins so far, the Spurs left a little something to be desired on the consistency front and weren’t as dominant has they could have been considering the opponents/injuries, but you accept the baby steps (for now).
Power Rankings
John Schuhmann, NBA.com — N/A (last week: 6)
coming soon
Law Murray, The Athletic — 4 (last week: 12)
The Spurs handled their business in three spots where they should have handled their business: a woeful Kings team, a short-handed Utah team and a short-handed Timberwolves team traveling on zero days’ rest. Still, San Antonio got impressive performances from Victor Wembanyama, culminating in a career-high 34 field goal attempts against the Timberwolves. The Spurs will look much deeper whenever Tobias Harris can get back.
Kurt Helin, NBC Sports — 7 (last week: 8)
San Antonio has found its footing somewhat after a slow start, and now boasts a top-10 offense and defense. And it has done that without the Spurs big off-season acquisition, Tobias Harris, who is nearing a return but there is no official timetable. The Spurs have stretches where they look like the best team in the league: Defending with ferocity, moving the ball, and getting easy buckets around the rim. Then the next quarter they fall in love with isolation basketball and things go cold, which happened too much against Minnesota on Halloween, but they got bailed out by 43 points from Victor “The Witcher” Wembanyama.
Brett Siegel, Clutch Points — 4 (last week: 9)
Victor Wembanyama was not about to let the San Antonio Spurs be below .500 for too long. Following a 0-2 start to the season, the Spurs have rattled off four straight wins and look like the team they were several months ago en route to the 2025 NBA Finals.
Over their last four games, the Spurs have averaged 122.5 points per game, led by Wembanyama, who has averaged 32.8 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 4.3 blocks per game during this win streak. Wemby says he is aiming for the MVP award, and these are definitely MVP-like numbers.
One of the more underappreciated players on this roster has been Julian Champagnie, who has shot 16-of-31, or 51.6 percent, from 3-point range in this span. He is shooting 47.6 percent from 3-point range on the season and proving to be one of the most impactful forwards off the bench in the entire NBA.
Coming up
- Mon. 11/2 vs. Utah Jazz (7:30 PM CT)
- Wed. 11/4 vs. Dallas Mavericks (8:30 PM CT)
- Fri. 11/6 at Sacramento Kings (Emirates Cup, 9:00 PM CT)
- Sat. 11/7 at Portland Trail Blazers (9:00 PM CT)
Bonus content
Not really Spurs related, but there has been so much drama in the NBA in the first two weeks alone — from injuries, to current and former teammate arguments, and scuffles — that it makes you appreciate the drama-free Spurs (outside of the first two games, of course). Here is a quick summary of all the craziness, in case you need catching up.
