San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama has made plenty of headlines during his first NBA season. But when the Spurs trailed the Memphis Grizzlies late on Tuesday night, Wembanyama, who had a cap of 24 minutes due to a series of previous ankle injuries, opted to check himself back into the game.
It was certainly a headline-making move by the rookie, and he cleared his 24-minute cap in the game, logging 26 minutes. But he only played about 35 seconds before head coach Gregg Popovich pulled him back out with 1:10 remaining. After the game, Wembanyama admitted he had gone a bit rogue with the move.
“I wasn’t allowed to sub in, but I still did it. And coach sent me out right after,” Wembanayama told Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News.
The bold decision by Wembanyama is one that came with mixed reviews, but it appears his teammate, Spurs guard Devin Vassell, had no issue with it and even viewed it in a positive light.
“That just shows the level of a competitor that he is and that he wants to win,” Vassell said.
Vassell admitted he didn’t initially realize Wembanyama had checked himself in and said he believes the coaches addressed it, per Orsborn.
“At the end of the day, we are all competitors, we all want to win, and if you feel like you are in a position to where you can help that team, you are going to do whatever you can and want to do,” Vassell said. “I didn’t know he had checked himself in, I think the coaches addressed it.”
The Spurs ultimately lost 106-98 to the Grizzlies, and Wembanyama finished with 20 points, seven rebounds, four blocks and one assist.
