Wembanyama watched Shai Gilgeous-Alexander lift the MVP trophy and then responded with a dominant performance. He said the message was that the Spurs, as a team, are ready to play in any environment against any opponent, and that their effort should stand above everyone else’s. He acknowledged the night felt personal after seeing someone else receive the Michael Jordan Trophy. Spurs coach Mitch Johnson described Wembanyama as highly competitive and said seeing another competitor rewarded with what he wants would be motivation. Gilgeous-Alexander, after lifting the trophy again, said the Thunder needed to be better, especially him, and emphasized improving against a team of that caliber.
"Wembanyama made no secret of the fact he felt he should have been given the award but took out his frustrations on the Oklahoma City Thunder as the San Antonio Spurs claimed Game One in the Western Conference finals. The fabulous Frenchman poured in 41 points and pulled down 24 rebounds as the Spurs won 122-115 in double overtime."
"Asked if he was trying to send a message, Wembanyama replied: "The message would be that we as a team are ready to go into any environment, any place against anybody. Even though we've still got a lot to learn, our effort should be over everybody else's. Tonight, we were relentless.""
"Pushed on the issue, he did admit the night felt personal and that his display was a natural response to watching someone else lift the Michael Jordan Trophy, adding: "Yeah, for sure, everything you just said.""
""He's competitive," Johnson said. "To see the other competitor [with] the trophy he deserves voted the winner, if you're a competitor and you see another competitor get rewarded with what you want, that's motivation. We all get motivated by different things, and I don't want to speak for him. But as a competitive person, that would be my approach and perspective.""
Read at 101GREATGOALS.COM
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