French prodigy Victor Wembanyama scored 15 points on his much-anticipated NBA debut on Wednesday but it was not enough to prevent the San Antonio Spurs slipping to a 126-119 defeat to Dallas.
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This year’s top NBA Draft pick, in foul trouble throughout the second half, made 6-of-9 shots from the floor, 3-of-5 from 3-point range, with five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a blocked shot over 23 minutes in his first NBA contest.
It was Slovenian guard Luka Doncic of Dallas who starred with 33 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists as the Mavericks scored the last eight points for the victory.
“It all starts with our defense,” Doncic said. “We played good defense for three quarters but especially at the end we locked in.”
Wembanyama, the 19-year-old phenomenon considered the top NBA prospect since LeBron James, used his 7-foot-4 (2.24m) frame, surprising quickness and outside shooting touch to display his arsenal of skills in the first game of his rookie campaign.
FRANCE 24’s Wassim Cornet reports from Los Angeles
After picking up his fifth foul only 26 seconds into the fourth quarter, Wembanyama went to the bench until only 7:12 remained.
Only 19 seconds later, Wembanyama made an alley-oop dunk shot off a pass from Devin Vassell, then added a 3-pointer, and his dunk with 4:56 to play gave the Spurs a 113-112 lead.
A Wembanyama jumper tied it at 115-115 with 3:55 remaining, but the Mavs were too tough for the Spurs down the stretch.
“Wemby” began drawing huge cheers after only 38 seconds, blocking a jump shot by eight-time NBA All-Star…
