The record crowds that flocked to the NBA’s Las Vegas Summer League were treated to lots more than the Victor Wembanyama Show. Our correspondent in the desert empties her notebookThe most common mistake people make post-Vegas is overreacting, whether positive or negative. Yes, the NBA’s Summer League provides a high-profile showcase for undrafted and G League players to show their mettle, so if they impress, it shouldn’t be discounted. And some rookies display their rough edges in their first NBA-branded outing in ways that might raise flags for concern. But, on the whole, sweeping generalizations from the past 11 days shouldn’t be made in either direction off a handful of games that in the long run don’t carry a whole...
It turns out there were two winners in the Wembayama sweepstakes: the French teen hailed as the best NBA prospect since LeBron James could not have handpicked a better organization to develop his craftThe NBA draft is still more than a month away, but its biggest question has already been answered. After winning Tuesday night’s draft lottery, the San Antonio Spurs are almost certain to use this year’s No 1 pick to select teenage French basketball prodigy Victor Wembanyama. “Almost certain” is no exaggeration – according to oddsmakers at time of writing, a $100 wager on the Spurs to take Wembanyama with their pick would net the bettor just 50 cents.It’s easy to see why Wembanyama is a shoo-in to...
The San Antonio coach has led the team to five NBA championships but taking a team depleted by injuries and a retirement to the Conference finals was something else The San Antonio Spurs’ season is over eight wins short of the franchise’s sixth championship, swept by the Golden State Warriors and outscored by 84 points over the final three and one half games of the Western Conference Finals. So concludes the finest coaching performance in Gregg Popovich’s 21 seasons leading the Spurs. San Antonio’s line-up for their Game 4 defeat showed how little Popovich had to work with at the end. Patty Mills, Danny Green, Jonathon Simmons, what’s left of LaMarcus Aldridge and then Manu Ginobili getting an honorary start...
San Antonio can still make progress after losing their veteran guard for the season. But questions over his future – and the team’s old guard – will emergeIn the middle of one of their biggest wins of the season, the San Antonio Spurs suffered a painful loss. In the fourth quarter of what was shaping up to be a blowout victory over the Houston Rockets, Spurs point guard Tony Parker crumbled to the ground, clutching his left leg and eventually had to be carried off the floor. San Antonio ended up winning Game 2 121-96, evening up their series against Houston, but the post-game mood was anything but celebratory. Related: NBA playoffs: Thomas scores 53 points in Celtics win, Warriors...
The NBA has no shortage of worthy MVP candidates, but the San Antonio Spurs star might have established himself as the frontrunnerFor most of the season, Kawhi Leonard was having one of the quietest MVP campaigns in recent memory. That changed on Monday night when Leonard scored 39 points as the San Antonio Spurs fought back from a 16-point deficit to beat the Houston Rockets. In the game’s final 30 seconds, he single-handedly secured the 112-110 win with a soon-to-be legendary sequence where he put the Spurs ahead with a three-pointer and then raced to the other end of the floor to block James Harden’s potential game-tying lay-up. The win helped the second-placed Spurs keep pace with the Golden State...