Wembanyama Suffers Concussion In Spurs Game 2 Loss

Victor Wembanyama suffered a concussion in the San Antonio Spurs loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.

The Trail Blazers defeated the Spurs 106-103. This tied their playoff series at one win for each team. 

At the 9:02 mark in the second quarter, Wembanyama tried to do a spin move to get to the basket. Trail Blazers guard Jrue Holiday got out of the way to avoid committing a foul. This caused Wembanyama to lose balance. He took a hard fall on the floor and hit his head.

He was immediately placed in concussion protocol. After the game, the Spurs confirmed he suffered a concussion. He will undergo further testing, but the NBA concussion protocol requires Wembanyama to be completely inactive for 48 hours before attempting to return. 

With Wembanyama out, the Spurs needed their supporting pieces to step up. De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle and Devin Vassell all shot under 40% from the field. Dylan Harper and Luke Kornet provided some help off the bench. Harper scored 10 points while Kornet secured nine rebounds. Despite this, the Spurs were unable to hold off the Trail Blazers. 

If Wembanyama needs to miss games for his concussion, Kornet is likely to become the new starting center. Kornet was a valuable piece to the 2024 Boston Celtics championship team. However, he’s only started 84 games in his nine-year NBA career, including one playoff start against the New York Knicks. 

Of course, somebody will need to replicate Kornet’s production off the bench. The Spurs currently have three centers on their playoff roster, but out of the rotation. Bismack Biyombo, Kelly Olynyk and Mason Plumlee all have experience in playoff games. 

Olynyk played in 42 regular-season games for the Spurs. He played for one minute in Game 1. Olynyk played in 18 playoff games for the 2017 Celtics, including two starts against the Cleveland Cavaliers.