LOS ANGELES — The Lakers had already dealt with the Victor Wembanyama show twice before Friday night’s home game against the San Antonio Spurs.
But even with those prior experiences, preparing for the rookie phenom is unlike game planning for any other player.
The 7-foot-4 French big man changes the geometry of the court because of his size and length. Passing lanes that are usually open become more narrow or nonexistent when Wembanyama is on the court. Shots in the paint are harder to get off, let alone make. Wembanyama entered Friday leading the league in blocks (3.2) and stocks (steals plus blocks) with 4.4.
This doesn’t even take into account what he provides offensively, having a unique skill set for a player of his size.
“You gotta attack,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. “You do anything passive, he’s gonna take advantage of it with his aggressiveness. The steals, the blocks. Just his motor. You have to fight energy with energy. That’s the biggest key to it.”
Behind the strong late play from the returning LeBron James (30 points, nine assists, seven rebounds), the Lakers (31-27) got back to their winning ways despite Wembanyama recording his first 5×5, beating the Spurs, 123-118, at Crypto.com Arena.
Anthony Davis had 28 points and 13 rebounds in 29 minutes, sitting out the entire fourth quarter after playing 32 minutes in Thursday’s road loss to the Golden State Warriors.
D’Angelo Russell added 22 points, six assists and three rebounds on his 28th birthday, while Rui Hachimura recorded 17 points and seven rebounds for the Lakers, who haven’t been able to move higher ninth place in the Western Conference standings despite their surge in recent weeks.
James, who was returning from a two-game absence because of left ankle peroneal tendinopathy, scored 12 points in the fourth to put the Lakers ahead 118-101 with a little more than three minutes left in the game.
He was pulled from the game shortly afterward.
The Spurs (11-46) finished on a 17-5 run from there to cut the Lakers’ lead to single digits in the closing minutes without Davis and James on the court, but the Lakers held on for the win, their ninth victory in the past 13 games.
Wembanyama had 27 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five blocks and five steals in 31 minutes, becoming the second rookie in NBA history and the youngest player in league history to achieve the rare “5×5” statistical performance – at least five points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals in one game.
More to come on this story.