The injury bug continues to bite superstars around the NBA.
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama was the latest to get bit, as he exited Wednesday’s game against the New York Knicks after injuring his knee early in the fourth quarter.
He did not return to the court, but was seen on the bench wearing slippers in the final minutes of what ended up as a 134-132 win for the Spurs.
The injury occurred when Wembanyama grabbed a routine rebound but landed awkwardly, possibly hyper-extending his left knee.
Wembanyama remained on the court while New York went on offence before Spurs forward Kelly Olynyk intentionally committed a foul so the Spurs could check on the star big man. Spurs guards Stephon Castle and De’Aaron Fox helped Wembanyama get up before he hobbled straight to the locker room unassisted.
Especially unfortunate timing, considering the French phenom put up 31 points on 10-of-12 shooting with 13 rebounds and a block in just under 24 minutes before exiting on Wednesday.
San Antonio trainers, doctors and general manager Brian Wright followed Wembanyama to the locker room.
Wembanyama entered the night averaging 24.0 points, 11.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.0 blocks through 20 appearances this season. The 21-year-old previously missed 12 consecutive games due to a calf injury.
He returned to the Spurs lineup on Dec. 13 and initially played off the bench for six contests before re-joining the starters on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the apparent knee injury to Wembanyama comes just days after Nikola Jokic hyper-extended his knee and was ruled out by the Denver Nuggets for at least four weeks.
— with files from the Associated Press
