"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."
"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."
Victor Wembanyama combined agility with a dominant wingspan to control both ends of the floor for the San Antonio Spurs. He played through fresh cuts and bruises while fighting for paint position and rebounds, compiling 39 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks in a 115-108 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. The win gave the Spurs a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference semi-final series. San Antonio remained unbeaten on the road in the postseason and showed growth, starting with Wembanyama. He became the only player in NBA history to reach 35 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks in a playoff game while shooting over 70% from the floor. He credited Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Shaquille O'Neal as historical benchmarks and credited Olajuwon for teaching his spin fadeaway.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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