Victor Wembanyama endured a mixed night, combining brilliant defense with woeful offense as the San Antonio Spurs were edged out 104-102 by the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game One of the Western Conference semi-finals.
The French superstar logged a triple double with 12 blocks (an NBA record in the play-offs), 11 points and 15 rebounds but it was his shooting that contributed to the Spurs’ problems.
Wembanyama shot just 29 per cent of his field goal attempts and was 0-for-eight from behind the arc.
“I feel like I had to use my energy,” he said. “Obviously, I used a lot of it on one side of the court. On the other side, offensively, I used too much energy on things that didn’t really help our team. So, that’s on me. There was some good and some bad. It’s a lot on me because my game wasn’t feeling good tonight [to] where the team is going to look for me. If I had been better, if the offensive leaders on our team would have been better, it would have been different. So, basically, if everything was different, it would have been different.”
If the Spurs are to progress then Wembanyama believes he needs greater control of the game.
He added: “Honestly, I need to look at the film again to see a little bit more, the dynamics. Right now, it’s a little bit blurry for me. I think I played the last 16 minutes of the game, maybe, and it just went by like this. That’s not good. It means I didn’t have the grasp on the game that I wish I did.”
Return of Edwards caps brilliant night for Minnesota
It was a disappointing night for San Antonio but a hugely encouraging one for Minnesota, who not only claimed the early advantage in the series but also got back guard Anthony Edwards from injury.
Edwards was not expected to be fit until Game 2 at the earliest after sustaining a left knee hyperextension and bone bruise in the first round win over the Denver Nuggets last Saturday. But, having worked tirelessly through the week, he came off the bench and played 25 minutes.
“I know for a fact that me being out there calms everybody down,” Edwards said. “I felt great.”
Veteran guard Mike Conley was full of praise for Edwards’ dedication in getting himself fit ahead of schedule.
He said: “Nobody expected him to play. I called him my hero before the game. You look up to somebody for what he just put himself through the last week.”
