TORONTO — Victor Wembanyama has his second triple-double — and his first with a block.
The San Antonio Spurs rookie blocked a shot from Toronto Raptors’ Grady Dick with 6:32 left in the fourth quarter of Monday night’s 122-99 win, earning him one of the more categories of blocked shots. Also got the NBA’s first triple-double. More than three years.
Vembanyama had 27 points, 14 rebounds, 10 blocks and 5 assists – all in just 29 minutes. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, he is the first player with 10 blocks and 5 assists in less than 30 minutes.
“I felt very good today,” Vembanyama said. “Great rhythm, strong start to the game. I think it’s just the NBA, you know. We have ups and downs in terms of shape, and today was a good day.”
Wembanyama leads the league in blocked shots and after Monday’s game he was the first rookie with 150 blocks, 150 assists and 50 steals in a season since Tim Duncan in 1997-98. There are 28 games left in the Spurs season.
“He did a little bit of everything,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of his star rookie’s performance. “Obviously he’s an all-round, talented player. He has a great understanding of the game and it shows in a lot of ways, whether it’s passing, decision making, blocking shots.”
It was the first triple-double with a block since Clint Capela had 13 points, 19 rebounds and 10 blocks for the Atlanta Hawks against the Minnesota Timberwolves on January 22, 2021. This was the last time anyone blocked 10 shots in the NBA. In a game.
Hakeem Olajuwon has the most such triple-doubles – along with blocks – since this statistic began being officially recorded in the NBA. He did so 11 times, one more than Dikembe Mutombo and two more than Spurs Hall of Famer David Robinson.
Robinson had nine such triple-doubles – one of them a quadruple-double. The only other Spurs player to have a triple-double with a block was Artis Gilmore, his only other player coming in the 1984–85 season.
Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic said, “Vembanyama is a player who will be playing in this league for the next 15 years. We need to figure out how to attack and how to play against him.” “Definitely a player who is unique with his size and shot-blocking ability. We have to do a much better job of figuring out how to play against him.”
Vembanyama was the No. 1 pick in last year’s NBA draft. He will be heading to his first All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis this weekend, participating in the Rising Stars Game on Friday night and the Skills Challenge on Saturday night.
Wembanyama recorded his second triple-double on January 10 against the Detroit Pistons, when he had 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists – but no blocks.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
