Victor Wembanyama, the towering 7-foot-3 rookie from France, delivered a stunning triple-double in the NBA, propelling the San Antonio Spurs to a resounding 130-108 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Wembanyama, the top pick in the last NBA draft, racked up 16 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists in just 21 minutes. This remarkable achievement makes him only second to Russell Westbrook, who recorded a similar performance for Oklahoma in 2014, in achieving such stats in under 20 minutes.
Wembanyama, at just 20 years old, becomes the youngest player in the league to record a triple-double without a single turnover since the recording of this statistic began in the 1977-78 season. This surpasses the record set by Andre Iguodala in 2005 with Philadelphia.
The Spurs’ guard Devin Vassell praised Wembanyama’s readiness for the challenges he’s been given. Despite missing all his four 3-point attempts, Wembanyama made 6 out of 16 shots from the field and broke his previous season-high of seven assists.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich complimented Wembanyama’s passing skills, which he demonstrated impressively against the Pistons, a team that had aspired to draft him. Detroit, with the worst record last season, missed out on the first draft pick, leading Wembanyama to ponder on what might have been a different future.
The victory was significant for the Spurs, who, with a record of 6-30, had been second-to-last in the league, just above the Pistons. San Antonio guard Tre Jones commented on the team’s improving performance.
Detroit, now at 3-35, faced their sixth consecutive loss since breaking their record-tying 28-game losing streak. Pistons coach Monty Williams acknowledged the lack of focus and discipline in the team’s play.
San Antonio dominated from the start, leading 31-19 in the first quarter, with the Pistons struggling to mount a challenge for the rest of the game. Detroit’s Jalen Duren pointed out the team’s lack of energy and effort as a key issue.
The Spurs had a balanced scoring effort, with eight players reaching double figures, including Keldon Johnson with 17 points and Devin Vassell with 16. For the Pistons, Jaden Ivey and Bojan Bogdanovic both scored 19 points, despite Ivey’s shooting struggles.
The Pistons were without point guard Cade Cunningham due to a knee strain and are expecting him back in a week.
Looking ahead, the Spurs will host Charlotte, while the Pistons will welcome Houston, both games scheduled for Friday night.
