Victor Wembanyama, Spurs shut down by Clippers in 40-point blowout loss
Victor Wembanyama finished with just 11 points in his first NBA road game on Sunday night
The Los Angeles Clippers had no issue shutting down Victor Wembanyama.
The Clippers flew past the San Antonio Spurs with ease to grab the 123-83 win at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday night. They held Wembanyama to just 11 points in the blowout, too, ruining what was the No. 1 overall draft pick’s first road game in the NBA.
The Clippers took full control of the game right off the bat. They opened the game on a 20-7 run, and held Wembanyama to just two points in the first quarter. By halftime, they were up by 19 points after limiting the Spurs to just 20 points as a team in the second quarter.
It was the third quarter, though, when the Clippers blew the game wide open. They opened the second half on an 18-6 tear, which suddenly pushed them up by 30. By then, the Spurs were way too far out of it. The Clippers cruised to the 40-point win without any issue.
Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 21 points and four assists in the win. Paul George and Russell Westbrook each added 19 points, and Ivica Zubac finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. The Clippers shot just shy of 52% as a team, and outrebounded the Spurs by 11. They trailed for only about three minutes total in the entire game.
Wembanyama was limited in his debut Wednesday night. He played in just 23 minutes of the Spurs’ loss to the Dallas Mavericks, but he scored nine of his 15 points of the night in the fourth quarter while keeping San Antonio close. Wembanyama added five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block in his debut, and shot 6-of-9 from the field.
Wembanyama then dropped 21 points and had 12 rebounds while leading the Spurs to an overtime win against the Houston Rockets on Friday night. He went 0-of-6 from behind the arc, but he scored the tying bucket to force the extra period.
Outside of a select few moments, Wembanyama couldn’t do much of anything Sunday night. He finished with 11 points, five rebounds and two assists. Wembanyama shot 4-of-10 from the field, and had five turnovers, too. All four of his buckets came from inside the paint just a few feet from the rim. At one point, Clippers forward and fellow Frenchman Nicolas Batum blocked Wembanyama at the rim to break up a dunk.
that's why Batum's in. pic.twitter.com/1fpTmirlqP
— Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20) October 30, 2023
Devin Vassell led the Spurs with 14 points. Cedi Osman added 12 points off the bench. They were the only Spurs players who scored in double figures.
Wembanyama and the Spurs will be back in action Tuesday night for the first of two games against the Suns in Phoenix.