SI:AM | How Victor Wembanyama Fared in His NBA Debut
Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I’m disappointed I went to sleep before Victor Wembanyama really took over.
In today’s SI:AM:
???????? Wemby’s debut
???? Our new reporting on Michigan’s scandal
???? James Harden’s problem in Philly
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There were flashes of brilliance
Fans hoping to be floored by Victor Wembanyama in his first official NBA game may have been slightly disappointed, but the French phenom still gave us plenty to gawk at in his debut.
Wembanyama already proved he could hang with NBA players during some excellent preseason performances, but last night’s game against the Mavericks was his first game in a Spurs uniform that actually counted. While he may not have stuffed the stat sheet, the rookie did show that the hype surrounding his arrival in the league is very much warranted. (Watch all his highlights here.)
Wembanyama finished with 15 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block. He hit six of his nine shot attempts, including 3-of-5 from three. He could've done more, but foul trouble all night after two early in the first quarter kept him to just 23 minutes on the court.
There were still plenty of highlights, though. Barely 30 seconds into the game, Wembanyama used his outrageous length to block a jumper by Kyrie Irving. His first NBA basket was a 25-footer. The play that impressed me most came in the fourth quarter, when Wembanyama casually dribbled through his legs before hitting a pull-up three over 7'1" Dereck Lively II. Sure, big guys take plenty of pull-up threes in today’s NBA, but they don’t dribble that effortlessly before doing it.
That fourth quarter was when Wembanyama came alive. He had nine of his 15 points in the final seven minutes of the quarter, including the three-pointer I just mentioned and an alley-oop.
While Dallas won the game, 126–119, there was plenty to like about San Antonio’s performance. Wembanyama gets all the attention, but the Spurs also have talented young players, such as Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson and Jeremy Sochan, who should help make this team one of the most improved in the league. The Spurs scored 43 points in the first quarter last night, more than they scored in any quarter all of last season.
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Another 7'3" guy turned heads
It was a great night for big men playing their first games in new uniforms. Kristaps Porziņģis was excellent in his first game for the new-look Celtics as Boston escaped Madison Square Garden with a 108–104 win over the Knicks. Porziņģis had 30 points, eight rebounds and four blocks in his first game since being acquired in a trade with the Wizards this summer.
Porziņģis gives Boston an elite scoring big man, a more serious offensive threat than 37-year-old Al Horford, who will come off the bench now. Porziņģis is also a strong defender, particularly against the pick-and-roll (he ranked in the top 15% of the league last season with 0.78 points allowed per pick-and-roll possession) and helped stifle Knicks forward Julius Randle last night. Randle was a dismal 5-for-22 from the floor.
Jayson Tatum is still the go-to guy for the Celtics (he led the team with 34 points last night), but the additions of Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday give Boston additional offensive options beyond Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Holiday was quiet in his Celtics debut (nine points and two assists), but they didn’t need him to do much because the team has the sort of depth that means not everyone has to have a big game every night.
The best of Sports Illustrated
Eric Gay/AP
- Chris Mannix broke down Wembanyama’s debut in more detail, including the Spurs’ plan to shield him from the physical rigors of the NBA.
- Richard Johnson broke some major news about the Michigan sign-stealing scandal, obtaining text messages that offer a better look at Connor Stalions’s motivations.
- By trying to force his way out of Philadelphia, James Harden has ensured that Sixers fans will never embrace him again, Michael Rosenberg writes.
- Matt Verderame lays out the four options the Browns have to deal with their Deshaun Watson mess.
- Watson will be out again this week, with backup PJ Walker getting another start.
- Kevin Sweeney’s SEC men’s basketball season preview focuses on a number of key transfers.
- Astros manager Dusty Baker announced his retirement.
- The NBA All-Star Game is reverting to the old East vs. West format.
- Niners quarterback Brock Purdy is in the concussion protocol. Sam Darnold would start Sunday against the Bengals if Purdy isn’t cleared to play.
The top five...
… plays in the NBA last night:
5. Donovan Mitchell’s game-winning three for the Cavs against the Nets.
4. Three blocks in 30 seconds by Pistons rookie Ausar Thompson.
3. Luka Dončić’s clutch step-back three in the closing moments. (Dončić had a triple double with 33 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists.)
2. Zion Williamson’s back-to-back powerful dunks.
1. Malik Monk’s emphatic tomahawk dunk over Kris Dunn.
SIQ
NFL owners voted on this day in 1993 to add an expansion team in Charlotte. One other candidate that did not have its proposal approved was St. Louis, which had already had which name chosen for its team?
- Stallions
- Steamboats
- Gateways
- Spirits
Yesterday’s SIQ: Which pitcher got the final out when the Marlins beat the Yankees in the World Series on Oct. 25, 2003?
- Dontrelle Willis
- Brad Penny
- Ugueth Urbina
- Josh Beckett
Answer: Josh Beckett. Pitching on three days’ rest, Beckett threw a complete game shutout (107 pitches).
Manager Jack McKeon’s decision to start Beckett was a controversial one. He was the team’s best pitcher all season, but starting him on short rest seemed like a rash decision when the team wasn’t facing elimination. Rookie Dontrelle Willis could have gotten the start after throwing one inning in relief in Game 5, or McKeon could have chosen veteran Mark Redman, who, despite getting knocked around in Game 2, had had a solid regular season and looked better early in the playoffs.
As Tom Verducci wrote in Sports Illustrated after the series, McKeon made the decision on the afternoon of Game 5. Beckett played long toss in the outfield that day, two days after throwing 108 pitches in a Game 3 loss. McKeon decided that if Beckett reported he was feeling good during that workout then he would get the ball in Game 6, regardless of how Game 5 turned out.
Beckett was outstanding in his Game 6 start, allowing just five hits and two walks while striking out nine. Of the 107 pitches he threw, 71 were strikes.
The final out came when Beckett got Jorge Posada to hit a weak grounder up the first base line. Beckett fielded it and tagged Posada to end it. I was an 11-year-old obsessive Yankees fan at the time and I still remember hearing Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” in the background as the Marlins players celebrated on the field.