Malaki Branham’s continued rise was a bright spot in Spurs’ loss to Rockets

We go down the highway, we’re the best of friends, insisting that the world keep turning our way.

On the road again, the Spurs did not feel the Willie Nelson vibes as they lost to the Houston Rockets. Devin Vassell led the team with 22 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. Victor Wembanyama notched another double-double with 10 points and 11 boards along with 7 blocks. Malaki Branham was a bright spot for the young team with 20 points, and he went 4 for 7 shooting from three.

On this play, Branham executed a great move to create space for him to drop one over his defender. The second-year Spur along with Keldon Johnson provided a nice boost from the bench.

Sure, LeBron James recently scored 40,000 points, which is incredible, but the Spurs’ own Devin Vassell made his own milestone of 3,000.

Only 37,000 more points and maybe a better Space Jam sequel to go!

If at first you don’t succeed, rebound and put the ball back where it belongs. Jeremy Sochan, for his part, continues to be a steady as a drumbeat, averaging 11 points and 6 rebounds in the starting lineup. The talented second-year pro (and fans) will continue to look to break out because the talent is definitely there.

Keldon Johnson demonstrates his hustle with an opportunistic cut to the basket. The Spurs sixth man continued to contribute from the bench with 18 points and 6 boards.

On this play, Victor Wembanyama was more open than a Wendy’s charging $20 surge-priced burgers.

Devin Vassell jumped so high on this alley-oop he had to reach down to bring the ball up to his stratosphere for the spicy jam. Vassell has enjoyed a surge in scoring of late, eclipsing at least 20 points in 5 of his last 7 games. The fourth-year pro is also averaging a career-high 19.3 points per game.

Wembanyama went coast to semi-coast to coolly drain the three after blocking a shot on the other end. In an “off” night for the Spurs’ rookie, he still managed to impact the game in other ways as evidenced by his whopping 7 blocks and 11 boards.

If you missed the game because you were too busy budgeting for fast food burgers, here are the full-game highlights:

Next up, the Spurs head over to Sacramento to take on the Kings on Thursday, March 6, 2024.