Victor Wembanyama said he must be “more of a team player” after the San Antonio Spurs lost 123-108 at home to the Oklahoma City Thunder in game three of the NBA Western Conference finals.
The Thunder recovered from falling 15-0 behind in the first three minutes to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Wembanyama, who top-scored for the Spurs with 24 points, said: “I feel like I have trouble making my team-mates better right now.”
Devin Russell, with 20, was the only other Spurs player to score more than 15 points.
In the series opener Wembanyama became the youngest player in NBA history to score 40 points and make 20 rebounds in a play-off game as the Spurs won 122-115.
He finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds in game two, which the Spurs lost 122-113.
“My shooting splits aren’t terrible,” said 22-year-old Wembanyama.
“I need to facilitate better, rebound the ball better, push their defence a little bit further and see how much they need to help with my team-mates and feed them.”
The Thunder scored 76 points off the bench at Frost Bank Center in game three, the most in a conference finals game since the 16-team play-off format was introduced in 1984.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for two seasons in a row, scored 26 points and made 12 assists for the Thunder, while Jared McCain scored 24.
Game four takes place at the same venue on Sunday (01:00 BST, Monday).
The winners of the Western Conference finals will meet the New York Knicks or the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, starting on 4 June.
The Knicks lead 2-0 in the Eastern Conference finals before game three at Rocket Arena in Cleveland on Saturday (01:00 BST, Sunday).
Read the full article here