SAN ANTONIO (AP) — San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama was placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol after he tumbled face-first into the court in the second quarter of Tuesday night’s playoff loss to Portland.
“He has a concussion. He is in the protocol,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said afterwards San Antonio lost 106-103 to tie the first round of the Western Conference at one game apiece. “We will take the right and appropriate steps.”
Any extended absence from Wembanyama would be a huge blow to San Antonio, who finished with the league’s second-best record behind the versatile 2.4-metre-tall center from France.
According to league guidelines, a player in the concussion protocol must have a minimum of 48 hours of inactivity and recovery and then meet various benchmarks without symptoms before being cleared to play. A player must undergo neurological testing and receive a final clearance from a team physician in consultation with the league’s director of concussion protocol.
Wembanyama was fouled by Jrue Holiday after spinning around the Trail Blazers point guard in the paint. He was unable to brace himself during the fall and his jaw hit the court with 8:57 left in the second quarter.
Wembanyama stayed on the field for about 30 seconds before sitting down and talking to teammate Stephon Castle for about a minute. Johnson called a timeout to check on Wembanyama, who immediately ran down the tunnel after getting up.
Wembanyama had five points, four rebounds, one blocked shot and one assist in 12 minutes. Veteran Luke Kornet replaced Wembanyama and started the second half at centre-back.
San Antonio is in the playoffs for the first time since 2019 defeated Portland in Game 1 of the first round of the Western Conference with a 35-point deficit to Wembanyama.
Wembanyama was named to the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year on Monday and won the award unanimously. He averaged a league-best 25 points, 11.5 rebounds and a league-best 3.1 blocks this season.
