Victor Wembanyama dominant in playoff debut

The San Antonio Spurs defeated the Portland Trailblazers 111-98 on Sunday night in Game 1 in star forward Victor Wembanyama’s playoff debut. Wembanyana checked out of the game with just under a minute left in the game after pouring in 35 points.

“I thought he was ready,” Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson said after the game, per ESPN. “There’s an approach that we all have in terms of expectation of a heightened level of preparation, detail, nuance, competitiveness, physicality, everything.

“There’s a real desire for that young man to participate in that. This was his first playoff game, and he has lofty expectations and goals for himself.”

Wemby was also massively impactful on defense, contributing significantly to Portland missing 11 shots he contested.

“He probably settled in a little bit later when he made some shots and his talent popped,” Johnson said. “But he really settled in there at a point when our defense kicked it into another gear. [Portland] did a good job of trying to create multiple actions and some confusion. [Wembanyama] did a good job of quarterbacking from the second line, getting guys organized.”

For his part, Wembanyama said that he felt the difference in atmosphere that the playoffs bring.

“The first time I stepped on the court, even for warmups, I felt the atmosphere was different,” Wembanyama said. “Everybody was ready. The fans were ready. It’s probably the most excitement I’ve seen this year in this arena. In terms of tactics, the sport aspect of it, it was different because we had more time to prepare.”

Game 2 is on Tuesday, and Wemby expects his team to be ready for a desperate and physical Blazers team.

“Of course,” he said. “It’s their identity. It’s something to be expected, and it’s also to be expected that they’ll double up on that in the next games. But we’re ready.”