It is bad news for Spurs as two key players are sidelined for Portland Trail Blazers’ game, Yankee Scores reports.
Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle will not play in Wednesday night’s game between the Spurs and Portland Trail Blazers.
Wembanyama suffered a left rib contusion during Monday’s 115-102 victory against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Meanwhile, Stephon Castle scored 17 points, dished out 13 assists and grabbed 10 rebounds during Monday’s match. He was then doubtful to start Wednesday’s game due to right knee soreness from his last game.
Wembanyama’s NBA Awards Eligibility Under Threat
On Monday, Victor Wembanyama scored 17 points, five rebounds and three blocks in just 15 minutes and 40 seconds. Meanwhile, according to NBA rules, his playing time was enough for this match to be counted as his 66th game
To qualify for the awards like MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and All-NBA Team, Wembanyama needs one more game with 20 minutes played.
Injury Update: Wembanyama Listed as Day-to-Day
Tuesday’s tests revealed that Wembanyama did not suffer any serious injury and now is listed as day-to-day. As for Monday’s 15 minutes and 40 seconds playing time, this won’t count toward postseason awards.
Wembanyama, the best defensive player of the year and MVP contender, needs to play 20 minutes in one of SpursWemb next three matches to qualify for all postseason awards.
Crucial Matchups Against Mavericks and Nuggets
After Wednesday’s match with the Trail Blazers, the Spurs will host the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets in their next two games on Friday and Sunday respectively.
At 60-19, San Antonio’s chances of overtaking the Oklahoma City Thunder and taking first place in the Western Conference are minimal. For that to happen, Oklahoma City has to lose three of their remaining four games.
