Posting date: July 12, 2023 at 07:40h

Last updated: July 12, 2023 at 01:08h
The Spurs then shut him down for the rest of the summer to avoid a potential injury. That’s before the Spurs shut him down for the rest of the summer to avoid a potential injury.

Charlotte Hornets forward Kai Jones (23) defends San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) during the NBA 2K24 Summer League in Las Vegas. (Image: Getty)

Wembanyama didn’t appear in the Spurs’ game on Tuesday night against the Washington Wizards. Spurs cut Wembanyama short before he could get hurt. Scoot Henderson (the #2 pick for the 2023 NBA Draft) left Friday’s game due to a shoulder injury. Amen Thompson, the #4 pick in the draft by the Houston Rockets, sprained his left ankle in the same game as Henderson.

Both the Trail Blazers and Rockets determined that their top draft picks won’t appear in any more summer league games.

Short Vegas Residency for Wembanyama

It’s been a wild trip in Las Vegas for the 19-year-old Wembanyama. A brief incident between his security detail and pop star Britney Spears thrust the #1 draft pick into the tabloid zeitgeist and he became internet meme fodder.

The distracting incident made the French-born Wembanyama wary of America’s celebrity-obsessed,

TMZ

-crazed populous and the relentless 24/7 sports news cycle. Wembanyama said he needed to take a break from media after his unfortunate encounter with Spears. “I can’t handle it. I know this is a special time in my life but I am glad that it’s done. I just wanna hoop and work out.”Wembanyama struggled in his summer league debut on Friday against the Charlotte Hornets. He missed 11 shots including five 3 pointers and scored just nine points. Against the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday, Wembanyama looked more like the #1 pick, with 27 points and 12 rebounds in his second game.

“There’s something great going on, starting,” said Wembanyama. We kind of knew that it would happen. But now, let’s get it rolling.”Wembanyama logged 54 minutes in two games with the Spurs. He blocked eight shots, grabbed 20 rebounds and scored 36 points. The organization decided that two games was enough exposure for Wembanyama. The organization chose not to roll the dice on the future of their franchise by risking injuries in subsequent summer league games.“All along, two games was the plan,” said Mike Finger from the

San Antonio Express-News.

“The Spurs wanted him to get a taste of the NBA, and he got it.”

Spurs Extend Pops for 5 More Years

The Spurs committed to making sure Wembanyama has a future Hall of Fame coach at his side during his ascent in the NBA by locking up Popovich through the 2027-28 season.Popovich is +2200 odds to win the 2024 NBA Coach of the Year.The Spurs were 22-60 last season as the worst team in the Western Conference. The Spurs were the worst team in the Western Conference last season, losing 22-60 games. Only the Detroit Pistons (17-65) lost more. The Spurs are a longshot, but the odds of winning the 2023-24 NBA championship according to DraftKings are higher. They have +10000 odds of winning the Western Conference in next season. The Spurs won back-to-back conferences in 2013 and 2014, respectively.