SAN ANTONIO (AP) — San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama tumbled face-first to the court in the second quarter of Tuesday night’s playoff game against Portland and left the game to be examined for a possible concussion.
The Spurs said Wembanyama was in the concussion protocol and would not return. Any extended absence for Wembanyama would be a massive blow to San Antonio, which finished with the league’s second-best record behind the versatile 7-foot-4 center from France.
Wembanyama was fouled by Jrue Holiday after he spun around the Trail Blazers point guard in the paint. He was not able to brace himself on the fall, and his jaw hit the court with 8:57 remaining in the second quarter.
Wembanyama remained on the court for about 30 seconds before rising to a seated position for about a minute and speaking to teammate Stephon Castle. San Antonio coach Mitch Johnson called timeout to check on Wembanyama, who immediately ran through the tunnel after getting to his feet.
San Antonio is in the playoffs for the first time since 2019 and beat Portland in Game 1 of the Western Conference first-round series.
Wembanyama was named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year on Monday, winning the award unanimously. He averaged 25 points, 11.5 rebounds and a league-best 3.1 blocks this season.
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