Devin Vassell became the Spurs’ late-game answer on Wednesday night, and San Antonio made no secret about why he kept getting the ball when the game tightened up.
The Spurs outlasted the Utah Jazz 117-111 for their first overtime win of the season, with Victor Wembanyama carrying the box score on 36 points and 14 rebounds. He scored from deep, worked in the paint and also found his rhythm from mid-range. But the finish belonged to Vassell, who helped pull San Antonio out of an early hole and then kept the offense moving when the game was there to be won.
That early hole was real. San Antonio had played the Sacramento Kings the night before and opened Wednesday looking like a team still feeling it.
Utah jumped ahead by 10 after the first quarter and controlled most of the first three periods. By the time the fourth quarter arrived, the Spurs had clawed their way even, though the Jazz still looked like the side with the edge.
That’s when Mitch Johnson started leaning hard on Vassell, and the Spurs kept rewarding the choice. He hit four of five shots inside the arc in the fourth quarter and did not take a single 3-pointer. Dylan Harper and Wembanyama kept feeding him, and Vassell kept finishing.
Keldon Johnson didn’t hide how important that stretch was. “He was tremendous for us," summed up Keldon Johnson.
"He got some nice buckets, he got some big rebounds, he made some big shots. Made great decisions.
He did everything we needed him to do for us tonight to get the win."
Wembanyama remains San Antonio’s clear centerpiece, and De'Aaron Fox has already built a reputation as a closer, but Vassell has earned the right to be the guy the Spurs trust when they need a basket.
“He keeps his head down, he works his butt off each and every day," Johnson added. "He stays out to get shots, he makes sure to take care of his body. He does all the little things that a professional does."
Wembanyama was content to let the hot hand keep cooking. He said, “We've got full trust in him, and we know it's a guy we like the ball to find him in these moments," and Vassell finished the fourth quarter and overtime with 12 points to help close out the win for San Antonio.
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