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Victor Wembanyama's rookie season with the San Antonio Spurs is over.
The Spurs said that the 7-foot-4 French phenom will not play in Sunday's season finale against the Detroit Pistons, ending a year that will almost certainly see him take home rookie of the year honors.
His final numbers: 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists and an NBA-best 3.6 blocked shots per game. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich suggested after Friday's win over Denver that Wembanyama might be held out for the finale, and the team confirmed that decision Saturday. The official reason cited was right ankle injury management.
“What’s really been interesting is when you watch him from the beginning of the year to now is how much better he’s gotten,” Denver coach Michael Malone said of Wembanyama earlier this month. “I mean, it’s noticeable. He came in as a really talented player, but when you watch him now ... Pop’s done a hell of a job building him up in one season.”
Wembanyama - the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA draft - appeared in 71 games with the Spurs, who enter the finale with a 21-60 record and tied entering the season's final day with Portland for the worst record in the Western Conference.
He had 34 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, two blocks and five 3-pointers in what was his last game as a rookie, a 121-120 win over defending NBA champion Denver on Friday night. The Spurs rallied from 23 points down to win the game - their biggest comeback win of the season, and Wembanyama gave the ball a celebratory spike as time expired.
“As a growing team, a young team, it’s big for us,” Wembanyama said after the game. “We’re going to need these kind of wins in the future. We’re going to need any win. But big-time wins against big teams, first seeds, we’re going to need those in the future.”
He became just the fourth player, and first rookie, to finish a season with at least 1,500 points, 250 assists and 250 blocked shots. The others: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did it five times, Hakeem Olajuwon did it twice and former Spurs great David Robinson did it twice. Nobody had done it since 1993-94, when Olajuwon and Robinson both had such a season.
Wembanyama won't play again for the Spurs until next season, but fans will presumably see him play long before that. He's expected to be part of the French roster for the Paris Olympics this summer.
And he's said many times that he feels the Spurs are on the right path toward becoming a contender again.
“We’ve got the potential to be great,” Wembanyama said. “The fact that we have the chance to live this, with the fans, I can only hope it’s as incredible as it can be.”
Daniel Weinman was crowned winner of the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event on Monday, taking home a record breaking $12.1 million in winnings. Weinman had to outlast the other 10,043 entrants to take home the prize and get his hands on his share of live poker’s largest ever prize pool – a staggering $93,399,900. As well as taking home the prize money, 35-year-old Weinman also got his hands on the WSOP Main Event bracelet. The huge bracelet contains 500 grams of 10-karat yellow gold, as well as 2,352 various precious gemstones.
Daniel Weinman won the World Series of Poker's main event world championship on Monday in Las Vegas, earning $12.1 million along the way. Playing in the tournament for a 16th year, Weinman was tops in a deep pool of 10,043 players vying for $93.39 million. His victory came after just 164 hands at the final table. "I was honestly on the fence about even coming back and playing this tournament," the 35-year-old Atlanta native told reporters afterward. Weinman's final table featured Jan-Peter Jachtmann, who landed in fourth place and took home $3 million, as well as Toby Lewis, who finished seventh and secured $1.42 million. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the main event's entry pool far outpaced the previous record of 8,773 set in 2006. "I've always kind of felt that poker was kind of going in a dying direction, but to see the numbers at the World Series this year has been incredible," Weinman said. "And to win this main event, it doesn't feel real. I mean, [there's] so much luck in a poker tournament. I thought I played very well." Steven Jones finished second, securing $6.5 million. And Adam Walton settled for third and a $4 million prize.
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