Wembanyama, Spurs Convert Last Season’s Turmoil Into 2026 Playoff Push
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One year after shutting down Victor Wembanyama with a blood clot, the San Antonio Spurs own the NBA’s third-best record at 39-16 and have 27 games left to chase their first postseason berth since 2019.
The turnaround continued Thursday night in Austin, where San Antonio routed the Phoenix Suns 121-94 at the University of Texas’ Moody Center. The “home” victory came almost exactly 12 months after the club announced Wembanyama’s deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder, a diagnosis that ended his 2024-25 campaign.
All-Star influence
Now in his third season, the 7-foot-5 center was too old for the Rising Stars showcase during last weekend’s All-Star festivities in Los Angeles, yet his competitive approach still resonated. Spurs rookie Dylan Harper scuffled with New Orleans Pelicans big man Derik Queen at tip-off, and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards said Wembanyama “set the tone” for the most hard-fought All-Star Game in years.
“I’m never stepping onto the court to lose,” Wembanyama said before the break.
Remembering a chaotic year
The 2024-25 season delivered repeated blows. Hall of Fame coach Gregg Popovich suffered a stroke less than two weeks into the schedule, elevating 38-year-old assistant Mitch Johnson. Wildfire smoke in Malibu forced a January postponement. Trade-deadline pickup De’Aaron Fox later underwent season-ending surgery on his left pinkie. San Antonio finished 34-48 and missed the playoffs for a sixth straight year.
Wembanyama’s health scare was the hardest hit. He played through fatigue during the 2025 All-Star mini-tournament in San Francisco, then felt swelling on a brief trip to Wyoming. Tests revealed a clot that left him with “5%” blood flow in his right arm. Between blood thinners and rehab, he spent the summer testing himself physically and mentally: organizing a chess event in Le Chesnay, practicing kung fu at a Shaolin temple in China, visiting NASA’s Johnson Space Center, and seeking advice from Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett and Hakeem Olajuwon. He did not play again for San Antonio until the Oct. 6 preseason opener.
Johnson’s steady hand
After guiding the club through the turmoil, Johnson shed the “acting” tag in May 2025 to become the Spurs’ 19th head coach. Players praise his candor. “He keeps it 100, not sugarcoating anything,” veteran forward Keldon Johnson said.
The numbers behind the rise
• Wembanyama is averaging career highs of 24.4 points, 51.1% shooting and 36.3% from three while again anchoring the league’s top shot-blocking totals.
• The Fox-Wembanyama duo owns a plus-10.9 net efficiency in 645 minutes this season; the pair logged only 120 minutes together last year (minus-2.4).
• Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle has lifted his field-goal rate from 42.8% to 46.4%.
• Sixth-man candidate Keldon Johnson and starter Devin Vassell, both in their mid-20s, join rookies Harper (No. 2 pick) and Carter Bryant (No. 14) in a 10-man rotation that each has played at least 40 games.
• San Antonio’s non-Wembanyama minutes have swung from minus-7.9 at last season’s break to plus-1.0; the club went 9-3 while he sat with a left calf strain earlier this year.
What’s next
San Antonio is 11-5 against the Western Conference’s current top-six seeds and has dropped only three games to Eastern foes. The Spurs host the struggling Sacramento Kings on Saturday in Austin before beginning the season’s final stretch.
“There’s going to be some good and some bad,” Wembanyama said. “It’s about how we react to everything.” Head coach Johnson believes last season’s hardship forged the bond powering the present run: “Those experiences made us as close as we are.”
Source: ESPN
