The best bits from Victor Wembanyama’s historic 5×5

The “five by five” didn’t prevent the Spurs losing by five. 

The All-Star Weekend has passed, with me, as per usual, hardly taking any notice of it at all. I just scrolled past some headlines on Monday that said something like this: “How can the All-Star Game be fixed?”

Since I don’t think I ever watched it, I certainly can’t provide an answer to that. And since I probably will never watch it, the answer to me is of no consequence anyway. A question I’m much more interested in is this: How can the Spurs be fixed? Deep into the season as well as the Rodeo Road Trip, it’s quite clear the Spurs need fixing.

We’re hearing the Spurs are going to give Victor Wembanyama more minutes for the remainder of the season. That’s fun for the fans because more minutes for that guy means more records and historic achievements. Friday night, from the moment Spurs announcer Dan Weiss mentioned the last “five by five” game anyone in the league had, I felt like the Lakers game would be the next night.

And so it was. Wemby went “five by five”. It’s only been done fourteen times before. I wouldn’t be surprised if, by the end of his career, Wemby will have had more “five by five” games in the NBA than the rest of the world combined. Meanwhile, here are some of his highlights from last night.

A dance with Jaxson Hayes:

A dance with D’Angelo Russel and Jaxson Hayes:

A party of three with Tre and Jeremy:

Unfortunately, Wemby’s running mate number one, Devin Vassell, went three from fifteen, and so the Spurs lost by five. The game was another chapter in the book that’s called “Who wants to play with Wemby?” The Spurs have at least twelve future roster spots that are up for grabs.

After a 32-point outing against the Sacramento Kings, Devin Vassell wasn’t able to help his team much on the offensive end against the Lakers, missing on twelve of his fifteen field goal attempts. That’s what happens to shooters sometimes. And it’s happens to Devin at least as often as it does to comparable players.

Let me put it this way: Some shooting guards have to work harder than other shooting guards, and Devin’s one of the hard workers since Tre Jones and Julian Champagnie pose little scoring threat. And since Devin can’t provide spacing for himself, there is regularly no spacing that helps him drive to the basket, which he has proved he can do. It’s a good thing, though, that his drives are drawning attention, so he can find the free man on the perimeter, as here with Champagnie:

Sometimes, and that was the case last night, Devin has to settle for difficult jumpers, because no one else except Wemby looks like they can score. On the defensive end, however, Devin had a good game, and not just because of his two spectacular blocks. He has become better this season as an on-ball defender. He’s not yet a pest, but, situationally, he’s getting there.

Zach Collins is not an NBA-level interior defender and rim protector. Soon as he came in, it was layup after layup for the Lakers – as it’s been against a considerable number of opponents. Even worse, he collected three fouls in no time. Still, Zach has qualities on the offensive end as a passer and scorer from floater and close range, as shown here:

Both Blake Wesley and Malaki Branham showed again what they can do last night – and what they can’t: Blake is what you want from a guy who covers the opposing ball handler, though he’s not yet what you want from your own point guard. Malaki thrived as a microwave scorer, and had one of his better games, but since his defense just isn’t there, he needs to play like last night more often. Maybe this will work to increase his confidence long-term:

The Spurs need upgrades at starting point guard, starting small forward, and backup center. If they manage to get those pieces this summer, we should see the natural development of Jeremy Sochan as well. It’s always great when Jeremy explodes for a dunk, as below, but it will happen way more often if he has the right players around him.

The Spurs also need upgrades in terms of shooting. Wemby’s and Devin’s percentages from deep aren’t what they would be if surrounded with great talent, but let’s not underestimate volume in this. Both are at least willing to shoot. If you’re not willing, there’s a problem — and the Spurs have many such problems. Because hardly anyone outside the guys mentioned is a willing shooter. They’re mostly reluctant. And the opposition knows it. In fact, I think the Lakers knew pretty well they were in control of the game.

Chief Pounding Officer J.R. Wilco said it some years ago on one of his podcasts: NBA teams pace themselves in the regular season against weaker opponents. Despite the Spurs cutting the deficit to three points in the second half, a short spurt by the Lakers in the fourth quarter was enough to put the Spurs out of striking distance. This never felt like a winnable game, despite the Spurs going on little runs every now and then to keep it reasonably close. In case you missed it, here’s the full highlights: