Victor Wembanyama returned with a bang on Sunday. After missing Game 3 of the San Antonio Spurs‘ first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers due to a concussion, he put up 27 points on 9-for-17 shooting, 11 rebounds, three assists, seven (!) blocks and three steals in a 114-93 win in Game 4. Wembanyama was plus-28 in in 34 minutes.
Wembanyama was predictably pleased after his team took a 3-1 lead in the series. He made it clear, though, that he was less than thrilled about the return-to-play process after he suffered a concussion in Tuesday’s Game 2.
In a walkoff interview with ESPN’s Malika Andrews, Wembanyama said: “I lots of emotions in me before the game — obviously, excitement, frustration — so I let a lot out tonight.” Asked what the previous few days had been like, he implied that the frustration was about how the NBA’s concussion protocol was carried out.
“The Spurs have done an amazing job,” Wembanyama said. “I’m very unhappy about the way the protocol has been handled by other parties. But my staff has been amazing. I’ve been really healthy, starting on Day 1 after the injury. The injury, it was weird, though. It was funny.”
At the postgame podium, Wembanyama fielded a follow-up, but declined to offer more specific complaints.
“I won’t get into the details,” he told reporters, via The Athletic’s Jared Weiss. “I don’t want it to become a distraction. Ask me again after the end of the season. But again, all the doctors, especially on the Spurs, we have the doctors all around, they were great, took great care of me. But the way the situation was handled was very disappointing. Not on the Spurs, again. But as I said, I won’t get into the details. I’m not saying that not playing was a good or bad decision. It was a decision. I’m not saying it was good or bad, but the way the situation was handled, very disappointing.”
It is notable that Wembanyama stopped short of explicitly stating that he should have been able to play in Friday’s game. (San Antonio earned a 120-108 win without him, by the way.) Maybe the unanimous Defensive Player of the Year will have more to say once the season is over.
