Victor Wembanyama turned Monday night in Phoenix into another reminder that the Spurs are built to punish almost every mistake you make.
San Antonio rolled past the Suns 122-96, snapping Phoenix’s two-game winning streak and sending the home team to 3-6 on the season. The Suns had a strong opening 12 minutes and were still within 10 in the third quarter, but the game kept slipping away until the margin ballooned to as many as 34.
Devin Booker still found his points, finishing with his third 30-plus-point game in four outings. Even that wasn’t enough to keep Phoenix from getting swallowed up by Wembanyama’s two-way wrecking ball act.
In just 25 minutes, Wembanyama posted 40 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and eight blocks. That line put him in a class all by itself, as he became the first NBA player ever to record multiple games of at least 40 points, 10 rebounds and 8 blocks in 25 minutes or less.
Afterward, Suns coach Jordan Ott didn’t dress it up.
"He just does it from all three levels right now," Ott said of Wembanyama post-game. "and then any time he has a switch on him, they just literally throw the ball to the top of the backboard. So when that starts to go, it's just so deflating, and it's really hard to overcome. But he does it to everyone."
Booker echoed the same sense of disbelief.
"It's something like we've never seen before," Booker said of Wemby post-game (h/t Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic).
The problem for Phoenix wasn’t just Wembanyama in isolation. San Antonio’s setup around him makes the whole thing even harder to handle. With De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper all sharing the floor as elite guards, the Spurs can spread the floor, force help, and then punish the collapse with open looks on the perimeter.
That’s the trap: if you stay home, Wembanyama can work inside. If you send bodies, the ball moves and the Spurs find space. San Antonio also trusts its defense enough to pressure up top, knowing Wembanyama can erase plays at the rim.
Ott pointed to that balance after the loss.
"I think that’s some of their experience. You play deep into the playoffs, you understand where to find your high quality looks. They do a great job of doing the whole 24 second shot clock," Ott continued on the Spurs.
"They maximize their possession. They have multiple elite scorers out there on the floor at one time, and they understand that if they feel crowds or they feel multiple bodies, that they're able to spray it to someone on the perimeter, and that really hurt us on some of those late shot clock shots."
In Other News...
Wembanyama Is Becoming A Serious Problem For The Suns
Victor Wembanyama is already making life miserable for the Suns in a way that goes beyond one ugly night. The Spurs fast start has been driven by his all-around dominance, with Wembanyama putting up eye-popping numbers across the board through the first 10 games and joining Shaquille ONeal as the only players in the last 50 seasons to open a season with that kind of scoring, rebounding and rim protection.
Against Phoenix, he looked every bit like the centerpiece of a team that is starting to believe in itself, going for 40 points, 11 rebounds and 8 blocks in a Spurs win. For the Suns, it was another reminder that even when they find ways to score, Wembanyama can take over the game at both ends, and the challenge of dealing with him is only getting bigger. [Read more 🡒]
Suns Loss Exposed A Problem Phoenix Still Hasn't Solved
The Suns latest meeting with the Spurs offered a familiar reminder of how much work still remains in Phoenix. San Antonio, with Victor Wembanyama affecting both ends of the floor, put the Suns in a bind inside, where Phoenix was beaten badly on the glass and gave up too much ground in the paint. It was the kind of loss that can linger because it pointed to a problem the Suns have been trying to address for a while.
Even with several Suns players earning community award nominations for their efforts in the game, the bigger picture was hard to ignore. Phoenix can survive stretches when the shot-making is there, but nights like this show how vulnerable the team can be when opponents control the interior and create second chances. Until that changes, the Suns will keep running into the same pressure points against teams built to exploit them. [Read more 🡒]
Suns Fans Get A Frustrating Jordan Goodwin Reminder Before Tougher Test
Jordan Goodwins absence has become a familiar wrinkle for the Suns over the past week, and it will linger into Monday nights meeting with the Spurs. Head coach Jordan Ott said the guard has been ruled out because of a calf injury, leaving Phoenix to keep adjusting its rotation while another key piece remains unavailable.
Goodwin has already missed a week, but the more immediate concern is how the Suns manage the front end of a back-to-back before a tougher test against the Clippers the next night. Mark Williams is also out following shoulder surgery, so Phoenix is still working around multiple absences as it tries to steady itself through a demanding stretch. [Read more 🡒]