Victor Wembanyama called it confirmation rather than revelation after the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Detroit Pistons 114-103 on Monday night at Little Caesars Arena.
“I do not think that is a night where we learn the most things about ourselves,” Wembanyama said. “It is definitely a night where we confirm progression and confirm potential as well. That was a good test.”
The Spurs extended their winning streak to nine games and improved to 40-16, second in the Western Conference behind Oklahoma City.
The 7-foot-4 center finished with 21 points, 17 rebounds and six blocks, anchoring a defense that held Detroit to 38% shooting and 7-of-36 from three.
“Second half was pretty satisfying defensively,” he said. “It was indeed a tough shooting night. This is what they do. If they do not want you to score, they are not going to let you score.”
Wembanyama emphasized the collective effort on both ends.
“Everybody was connected tonight,” he said. “Second half, both sides of the floor. The whole game, everybody was connected offensively. It shows on the stats. We got six players shooting more than 10 shots. Everybody got to eat tonight because we were so connected.”
San Antonio made 18 threes and assisted on 32 baskets, numbers that reflected that approach.
“We were trying to fight against the wall the whole game,” he said. “We tried to make it a basketball game and score the ball. The only way to do that is to share it.”
Defensively, the Spurs limited Cade Cunningham to 5-of-26 shooting.
“Wow, amazing. Amazing,” Wembanyama said of Stephon Castle’s work on Cunningham. “Five for 26. I do not know. I would like to know how many minutes Steph was guarding him. He is definitely responsible for a good amount of those 21 shots. I do not know what the playoffs are like, but I know we are going to need some of that.”
The contest featured multiple physical sequences, including a second-quarter exchange that resulted in technical fouls.
“I think it is definitely one of the top five most physical games,” Wembanyama said. “For the future and looking at the season overall, this is probably the team that is most capable of playing that way. They crash the boards. They force bad shots. They try to play bully ball. I think this is the reason they are so feared.”
He acknowledged the toll of that physicality.
“Sometimes I think I do fall too much,” he said. “Sometimes you got to fall because you are going to waste energy if you are trying to stay up.”
Reflecting on similar matchups, he added: “This team is the most capable to play this way, but Houston is not far behind, as well as other teams.”
Wembanyama also highlighted Devin Vassell’s 28-point outing on 10-of-14 shooting.
“Very few things to say,” he said. “It said it all on the stat sheet. Super efficient. He did not force anything. Important on the defensive side as well.”
On sustaining momentum, he was direct.
“I do not know really that there is a formula for that,” Wembanyama said. “The mistakes we made in the beginning of the season can help us in that, but we are going to have to confirm it.”
