Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs find themselves on the brink of elimination for the first time in the playoffs this year. An underwhelming performance from Wembanyama saw the Spurs go down 3-2 to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.
After a convincing performance in Game 4, the Spurs were a shell of themselves on Tuesday night. The Spurs were chasing the Thunder for most of the game but ultimately succumbed to a 127-114 defeat at the Paycom Center.
However, there was a questionable moment that took place towards the end of the game. With two minutes to go in the fourth quarter and with the game out of reach, Wembanyama checked out of the game.
As he walked towards the bench, he could be seen whispering something to Bismack Biyombo and Mason Plumlee. Immediately as the game resumed, the two big men picked up hard fouls on Jared McCain.
Victor Wembanyama was not able to repeat his heroic Game 4 performance in Game 5. He ended his night with 20 points and six rebounds as he struggled to cope with the defense of Isaiah Hartenstein.
The French star is not known for playing dirty. But he has had a few controversial moments in these playoffs. Earlier in Game 5, he was seen bumping shoulders with Chet Holmgren when they walked towards their bench during a timeout.
However, the hard fouls on Jared McCain raised suspicions about the Frenchman. McCain scored 20 points on the night and has been a thorn in the Spurs' side during this series. But after the consecutive hard fouls on the Thunder guard, many suspect that Biyombo and Plumlee were acting on Wembanyama's instructions.
While some may see this as a regular exchange between Victor Wembanyama and the two big men, the events that took place soon after could be considered controversial by some. However, the suspicions remain unverified for now.
But one person who questioned Wembanyama's leadership is sports columnist Skip Bayless.
I don't know what happened but it lacks leadership. It's a lack of leadership if you gonna lean over and tell your two bench guys, your two goons to go get somebody.
Skip Bayless on Gil's ArenaBayless believes that Wembanyama instructed his two teammates to go and hard foul the Thunder guard in garbage time. The sports analyst is a longtime Spurs supporter, but Oklahoma is his hometown. Hence, he has been at a crossroads on who to support in the Western Conference Finals, before revealing that he will support the Thunder.
There has been a lot of physicality and hard fouling in this series, especially on Victor Wembanyama as the Thunder look to find ways to control the Spurs center. The Spurs have called out the officials for letting the Thunder get away with several calls.
However, after the recent dirty fouls on Jared McCain, former NBA Sixth Man of the Year, Lou Williams said he had no problem with it.
I am cool with it. All is fair in war… but don't do these type of things and then create a frenzy about not getting calls and not shooting free throws. I am cool with all of this stuff but make sure you're cool with it too.
Lou Williams on Run It BackWembanyama already received a warning for not talking to the media after Game 5. But he finds himself in more controversy after the recent suspicions. The 22-year-old will be looking to bounce back strongly in Game 6 at home and force a Game 7.
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