The San Antonio Spurs are now 0-2 to start the season. They lost their season opener against the Thunder 116-104, and they lost to the Rockets 104-100 in their second game. The Spurs had a chance to tie the game on the last play, but a superhuman play by Amen Thompson erased that shot. Victor Wembanyama had a horrible first game, but had a good second game with not much help outside of Dylan Harper.
Spurs Center Wembanyama Needs a Consistent Supporting Cast
Wembanyama had 25 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks against Houston. He didn’t shoot particularly well, but his presence was known. Harper added 20 points on 8/15 shooting, which was a good contribution. Fox did have 19 points but was a minus 14 in the game. San Antonio’s two games have been really inconsistent, with Wembanyama and the rest not being able to have good games at the same time.
Even if the stat sheet looks like the Spurs had help from everywhere, the plus/minus stat shows a different story. That stat shows that when they were on the floor, they were a liability in the game. They have enough players who are able to create shots or score when Wembanyama is drawing the focus. The Spurs have capable scorers; they just have to get back to how they were playing last season.
Houston Exposed the Spurs Interior Defense
When Wembanyama went to the bench, Sengun started attacking Luke Kornet. Once Sengun got going, not even Wembanyama coming back in could stop him. He finished the game with 29 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists while shooting 50% from the field. The fourth quarter was all Sengun, and he attacked the paint every time down the floor.
Sengun’s 14 fourth-quarter points were huge, and they showed a flaw in the Spurs’ defense. They struggled whenever they got bumped in the chest. Sengun got into every position he wanted the ball and kept bumping Wembanyama in the chest. San Antonio looked helpless trying to guard him in the paint. They need to work on their help-side defense, and they should have been getting the ball out of Sengun’s hands.
Late Game Execution
The Spurs’ execution down the stretch was poor. They missed free throws and turned the ball over a lot. Fox alone had five turnovers in the game, which can’t happen from your starting point guard. The shot selection from San Antonio also became bad. Overall, in the fourth quarter, it was a bad performance, and they kept doing it to themselves. Wembanyama even had his late layup swatted away by a guard in Amen Thompson. They need to work on their late-game execution going forward.
Opportunity to Respond Against the Dallas Mavericks
Spurs have a matchup with the Mavericks on Saturday. This presents a good opportunity for the Spurs to get on track. They have a chance to work on taking care of the ball and executing down the stretch. Look for Wembanyama to be more aggressive in attacking the paint and force Fox and Harper to search for their shots more. This is the perfect chance for San Antonio to get in the win column against an injured Mavericks team.
The Spurs already showed the capability of competing with two of the best teams in the league. These two losses are not a crisis; they’re an early warning for the Spurs. They need to lock in and become more focused. This isn’t looking like the same team that went to the NBA Finals last year. It is still really early, and they play a very winnable game next, a game that can turn the early-season struggles around.
The Spurs 0-2 Start Reveals a Problem Victor Wembanyama Can’t Fix Alone