Victor Wembanyama Comes Alive Late in Foul-Ridden NBA Debut
Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama made his NBA debut on Wednesday night, and although it was mostly distracted by the No. 1 draft pick’s foul trouble, fans still got a taste of what he has to offer.
The 7’4” center finished with 15 points, five rebounds, two steals, two assists and one major block that came within a minute of his start on Wednesday. The Spurs ended up losing 126–119 in the close matchup against the Mavericks to begin the 2023–24 season.
Wembanyama did all of this in just 23 minutes of play as his time was very limited due to him getting his fifth foul of the game at the beginning of the fourth quarter. NBA fans were not happy with Wembanyama sitting for what seemed like a huge chunk of his debut. Check out some of the social media reaction.
when Wembanyama's on the bench pic.twitter.com/BnnPsDuDMT
— matt ufford (@mattufford) October 26, 2023
After sitting most of the 2nd due to foul trouble, and most of the third due to foul trouble.
— Nate Capalot (@LeNooshi) October 26, 2023
Wembanyama comes into the 4th quarter and gets his 5th foul 26 seconds in. He is committing some of the dumbest fouls I have ever seen. pic.twitter.com/PBWv2VBFDd
What a disappointment. If Wembanyama was playing bad that'd be one thing; at least we'd be getting to see him play.
— Justin Termine (@TermineRadio) October 26, 2023
But in the most anticipated debut in 20 years--- not even getting a chance to see him because of foul trouble sucks.
We’re gonna have to hear about Wembanyama being in foul trouble for his NBA debut for the next 15 years.
— ™️Marcus (@TheMisterMarcus) October 26, 2023
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich decided to bring him back to the court with about seven minutes left in the game. Wembanyama quickly made an alley-oop, followed by a three-pointer. His nine points in the fourth quarter were more than he scored in the first three quarters combined.
Despite him being limited in his debut, fans were still generally excited with Wembanyama’s performance and about what’s to come.
5 quick points from Wemby has the Dallas lead down to 2 ????
— NBA (@NBA) October 26, 2023
????: Spurs-Mavs | Live on ESPN | #KiaTipOff23 pic.twitter.com/p4CMd7si32
Spurs fans watching Wemby in the 4Q pic.twitter.com/qo7XUmQNmG
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 26, 2023
You gotta be kidding me Wemby pic.twitter.com/YpLv1ccNFh
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) October 26, 2023
Yes, it wasn’t his best game. However:
— Wemby Muse (@Wemby_Muse) October 26, 2023
- still shot 6/9 from the field
- crowd was electric
- defensive presence was there
The future is bright! pic.twitter.com/R9HujA2Rsg
A man 7-4 shooting threes on a regular. Victor Wembanyama is like a damn created player on NBA2K ????
— Antwan V. Staley (@antwanstaley) October 26, 2023