Victor Wembanyama plays with an agility and a gracefulness beneath his daunting wingspan that can make his dominance for the San Antonio Spurs on both ends of the floor appear almost effortless.
Fresh cuts and bruises on those long arms after fighting for paint position and jockeying for rebounds all night with the Minnesota Timberwolves made clear Wembanyama had to put in plenty of work to compile 39 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks in a 115-108 victory in Game 3 on Friday that gave the Spurs a 2-1 lead in their Western Conference semi-final series.
“It’s going to happen,” Wembanyama said. “They’re Wolves, after all.”
The Spurs stayed unbeaten on the road in this postseason with their first win in a truly close game, after four victories in the first round over the Portland Trail Blazers with margins between 12 and 21 points.
“They just continue showing growth,” coach Mitch Johnson said.
Starting with Wembanyama. The 22-year-old French phenom in his first NBA postseason has played in just seven playoff games, but he has wasted no time writing quite a legacy.
The only other players in NBA history to hit the 35-point, 15-rebound, five-block thresholds in a playoff game? Hall of Famers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Shaquille O’Neal. And only Wembanyama has now done it while shooting better than 70% from the floor. The 7ft 4in star was 13 for 18 – and 10 for 12 from the line.
“It’s good to be along with the big fellas,” said Wembanyama, who credited Olajuwon for teaching him a spin fadeaway he sank over his mentor Rudy Gobert during a 16-point fourth quarter.
Wembanyama set an NBA postseason record with 12 blocked shots in the series opener, but he lamented his lack of impact on offense after the 104-102 loss to the Wolves on Monday. He stormed out of the gate for Game 2 by immediately asserting his dominance on both ends of the floor that sparked the Spurs to a 133-95 victory on Wednesday, and the travel north did nothing to stem that.
“He’s a world-class defender. You’re always aware of him,” Wolves guard Ayo Dosunmu said. “Yeah, he’s a gift at that end of the court.”
De’Aaron Fox scored 17 points for the Spurs, and Stephon Castle had 13 points and 12 assists with a team-high plus-17 rating. Anthony Edwards had 32 points and 14 rebounds and Naz Reid added 18 points and nine rebounds for the Wolves. Minnesota will host Game 4 on Sunday night before the series shifts to San Antonio for Game 5 on Tuesday.
New York Knicks 108-94 Philadelphia 76ers
Jalen Brunson scored 33 points and sealed the game with big buckets late to the delight of roaring Knicks fans, leading New York to a 108-94 win over the host Philadelphia 76ers for a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.
The Knicks took turns taking the fight out of the Sixers in the fourth quarter, turning a four-point lead into another double-digit victory.
Josh Hart had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Mikal Bridges added 23 points, pushing the Knicks and first-year coach Mike Brown within one victory of their second straight conference finals appearance.
The Knicks have the luxury not to rush back forward OG Anunoby, who’s averaging 21.4 points per game in the postseason. He sat out with a strained right hamstring and remains day to day.
Joel Embiid scored 18 points for the Sixers in his return after he missed Game 2 with a sprained right ankle and a sore right hip.