[Highlight] Wemby says that battling Jokic today was one of the most fun games he remembers and that it was a good test against a team still playing for something
Very fun š
Heās def mad lol
Yeah lol. He’s very well media trained and diplomatic but you can still tell
Both can be true.
I donāt think heās mad. Course he wanted the win but heās not mad. Denver played them well. His body language after was more like āokay so this is how playoff games areā. This was such a huge test game for them (and they nearly passed).
Heās definitely a little pissed off. Wemby is a guy who wants to win everything. He finished 2nd in the Olympics, 2nd in the NBA Cup, 2nd in DPOY voting his rookie year..
This game probably sealed the 2nd seed for the Spurs and him into 2nd in MVP voting. He enjoyed the game but a loss is still a loss.
Lot of twos going on for a 22 year old
THE NUMBERS WHAT DO THEY MEAN MASON
23
Just turned 22 a couple months ago
Might be 3rd now in MVP after this Jokic game.
Nah, Wemby’s still had the better season and he played very well in his own right. This isn’t Shai/Luka where one guy embarrassed the other. Wemby and JokiÄ locked horns and the younger man flinched first
If you not mad about losing you are a loser itās motivation to not lose next time.Ā
You talking like this is game 7 of the NBA finals. They are locked for that 2nd seed. They came from a long winning streak. Of course they didnāt like that they lost, but they also know they made a lot of mistakes during the game and that this was learning lesson. They were playing a highly experienced Denver team in a playoff atmosphere. This game was more of a training match, not āwe gotta win at all costā type of game. It was still a regular season game.
If anything, spurs were glad coz theyāve gotten to see what they need to do better come playoffs basketball.
I think he’s kinda mad. The guy really hates losing and if you watched the whole game there was a point towards the end where intensity and experience kicked in towards the Nuggets.
Jokic suceeded into giving his whole team his will to win.
Felt like they cranked up the level to playoff and Spurs just didn’t know how to do it.
I was overly confident on Spurs probably being able to go into the finals but after this game, it really made me come back to earth and I’m sure it was a great lesson for Wemby and the Spurs.
But SA were millimeters from winning the game. Fox screwed up big time (for the 3 and 1), air balls, and if Wemby’s shot had gone it, the game would have been won, so nothing alarming, just a preview of what’s waiting for this young spur team. It was a great game nonetheless.
Also a good time to learn some lessons. I’d rather this than game 6 of the finals…
Itās a two things can be true situation. You can enjoy the process and have fun competing and learning from the process andĀ still be ticked off when you lose. I imagine most successful athletes have both mentalities.
Imagine how different the narrative is if he makes that tough shot at the end of regulation.
But it’s a make or miss league.
For real. I mean, if Aaron Gordon makes his three right before that, Wemby’s shot is a moot point. At the same time, if Wemby makes his shot, the narrative is that Wemby is the MVP.
These kinds of games are always just a couple coin flips plays from being a totally different outcome
Yea It’s always silly to me how much people judge so critically over close games like this. The only thing you can somewhat infer is these teams seem closely matched.
And the two MVP candidates are very closely matched as well. Crazy overreactions everywhere to two incredible performances.
He knows this loss sealed 1 seed and MVP for Shai
MVP been over
I was sealed anyway. No way Spurs catches up with OKC because they rarely lose.
“Against a team thats actually… playing for something…” was some lightweight subtle shade lol
I think he’s referring to us beating tanking teams recently. But maybe I’m wrong.
Yes but itās a casual indictment on the state of the league that only Wemby could pull off lolĀ
Spurs haven’t been playing a lot of good teams lately
I hate jokic >!(on the court)!<
He’s mad about every loss
Itās both I think. Heās as fierce of a competitor as you can get so heās obviously upset about losing but again, as a competitor, he definitely had a blast playing against the best player in the worldsĀ
Itās his competitive nature. Makes perfect sense that heās mad despite enjoying going toe to toe with Jokic
Good, let the hate flow through you
In Wembyās mind: Fox sold
I agree Fox sold on that fast break play that shit shouldāve been easy for him. But bro the spurs coaching staff kept spamming wemby ISOās while he being guarded by Aaron Gordon. This dude is the perfect fucking archetype to bother the hell out of him.
Heād pretty much waste the shot clock and hand Fox a literal grenade. Either way it was a good game.
I don’t think Fox sold, exactly.
You could see it on the weird airballs he kept doing; his legs weren’t 100%. Maybe just because of the Denver altitude?
The lob turnover and the weird little fadeaway after getting the rebound was complete selling, airball 3s were grenades tho
1 airball was a grenade from Wemby. The other two was him just straight up missing badly. Fox had three airballs. Kept taking dumb middys instead of passing when his shot wasn’t falling. He completely sold this game.
Also fouled a 3 point shooter for 4 points.
The foul and 4 point play is as his most bone head moment yesterday. Put the team in such an unnecessary position
It happens. Manu did a very similar thing in the past as well.
So true, still have love for Fox
I wish they played Harper a bit more too. Fox and Vassell weren’t playing great. I thought Harper was putting great pressure on the Nuggets defense. Also, Harper was playing great on ball defense imo
Harper made one shot clock violation and got yanked.
I havenāt watched a ton of spurs this year but surely castle couldāve beat jokic off the dribble?
Wemby seems like the type of player that’d blame himself for the loss since he missed the game winner
he was shaking his head walking back to the bench before OT
Wemby knows that shot was an inch away from falling and he shouldāve made it
Yeah He wants to be the best player in the league so he holds himself to the highest degree and he knows he’s the leader of the tean
Si he is espooky leader of the tean
He was given a chance to win it 2x in which he threw a grenade and later on he missed.
Fox days are numbered he tried to backpack on the Wemby train but Harper is taking that spot
Never underestimates a sports fan ability to over react. Fox is fine
Fox really hasnāt ever been on that elite level. Sure he put up numbers on a bad Kings team, but he has no intangibles aside from maybe his speed which will degrade sooner than later.
Heās never had a good consistent shot after almost 10 years in the league. Heās a decent facilitator but doesnāt play with especially high basketball IQ. Also decent at driving but not aggressive enough. Solidly average defender as well.
I can see him taking more of a Melton role in a few years, strong contributor and leader off the bench. Good player, just not in the elite-tier.
Pretty sure Fox has lead the league in FG% at the rim since the all star break lmao but alright man
Nice like I said Fox is a good player, but yall would still probably be better trading his contract for a good wing / shooter down the line
I don’t disagree nor agree with the notion at this point, my main emphasis on the conversation was more towards people freaking out over this particular game and saying silly things like “his days are numbered” like a mafioso lmao
Heāll be a good costar until Wemby is ready to team up with a real First Team player and dominate the league
Fox is great and I love our depth at the guard spot but I do think Harper should be getting more of his minutes and Fox is in the lineup because of his experience and seniority more so than actual performance.
Max contract in second apron era for 18.5PPG guard is not fine unless you are an elite defender.
The only question is how they get rid of that contract
The Kings have a chance to do the funniest thing.
Expansion draft
Honestly might be the only way, he’d likely be the most talented player Seattle or Vegas could pick up for free.
And cap space doesn’t really matter for them because they likely aren’t getting free agents that early anyways.
Also the current rumor is Seattle/Vegas would be added starting in the 2028-29 season and by that point Fox would only have two more years left on his contract too.
I think we keep him through Harperās rookie deal.
By the time we need to trade him it will be an expiring contract.
Yeah, it actually works out perfectly for him.
Almost like the Spurs front office knows what they are doing. Seriously, that franchise has a great track record when it comes to everything- drafting, player development, coaching, taking care of their personnel, managing the salary cap. They do it all well and are THE example of what to do as a small market team to be successful long-term.
I am thankful that the Thunder were able to get Presti so early on (from San Antonio) and look to be following the Spurs model as a small market franchise for long term success. I always loved the Duncan/Ginobilli/Parker iteration of the Spurs, but once my state got a team (canāt say my city- Tulsa resident here) their sustained greatness became something to overcome rather than admire.
Now that both teams are contending again I love the rivalry, but damnit, those guys just had a top 8 guy go on a transcendent run for 15+ years! I want to see my favorite team do something similar- it should be our time š , but now they have freakin Wemby! Dudes not even human! Like I said, Iāve always really respected the Spurs, but some of these fans (and itās people from my fan base too) have gotten so toxic, along with the discourse surrounding the league it makes it super difficult to have a rivalry that isnāt hateful. Hopefully it gets better. I mean no one is supposed to love their rival, but shit, the vitriol is getting current U.S. politics levels of toxic and as far as I know neither the Thunder nor the Spurs have anyone as morally bankrupt as our current president- we should be able to not COMPLETELY hate each other.
Whatever happens moving forward, the league is in great shape. The talent level is absolutely insane- best Iāve ever seen in 25 years of being a pretty hardcore fan. These playoffs and the next several years are going to be great, and Iām really looking forward to it.
Banking on an expansion draft lol
Wtf is with everyone here saying sold in place of ‘choked’ like in my day. Sold is basically implying he threw the game for gambling odds… How is that terminology for playing bad? Smh. Gonna go yell at the clouds some more
220M to airball 3s
Spurs had a bad 3pt shooting game. This would be a very fun and balanced 7 game series
Keldon, Castle, Fox went 0 for 16 from 3, in a game lost by 2.
Shooting Variance is a motherfucker aint it
Both teams shot close to their percentages. This was not one of those absurd variance games.
Exactly, the cope in here is ridiculous. It delegitimizes what was a legitimately classic-feeling game
Exactly, can also say Jamal and THJ would make more 3s next time
I could just as easily say Champagnie, Harper and Barnes went 10⁄15 and yet they still lost
i’ve said before that the lack of real shooting is going to be the Spurs’ downfall in the playoffs. You can look at improved shooting numbers, and it is better than before, but none of these guys are real pressure shooters that can reliably knock down clutch shots.
Wemby has a bit of Jokic under those fingernails.
Most of the Nba does.Ā
So he can smell them while he’s laying in bed, about to go to sleep
my dream scenario tbh
Straight up why do these multi million dollar a year athletes not trim their damn nails?
Because the NBA doesn’t force them to, so they keep them long to scratch up opponents.
Wemby got them Bruce Bowen nails right now
I thought Jokic was flopping at first but damn this mf has straight up talons for nails lmfao
Wemby’s getting his revenge on all the scratches he has had all over his body this month.
Iāll never understand why the league doesnāt make players cut their nails. Make it an auto tech with replay every time someone scratches a player because their nails were long.
*Rip Hamilton nails
It was hella fun to watch even though the Spurs lost. GSG!
The problem with winstreaking and mostly playing against tanking teams is you never get punished for your mistakes, and you build bad habits.
This loss is good for the spurs
80% of those games in the win streak are against contenders and playoff teams, what the fuck are you yapping about.
Maybe if you count the playin as the playoffs
We not counting out the suns and the clippers, theyve had our number. Weāve beat almost every good team since january. And itās not like we didnt beat them before it either
Oh yeah it was a great win streak for sure i was trying to discredit that i just thought 80% was high lol
Reddit is full of these exaggerations and outright playing dumb you gotta wade thru all possibilities š
Very true lol I am glad I came here from Twitter though
Not true lol, most are against wizards and kings etc.
You think the people posting here actually watch games
You disagreeing with Wemby lol he said it ?
Am I crazy to think they should have put Harper in for few mins in OT? He made that clean fadeaway then was subbed out in the 4th
And they likely meet in round 2 this playoff due to Lakers likely dropping to 4th seed w/o Luka and Reaves. This may be the last time Nuggets may have, if any, an tiny edge on the young Spurs. I won’t bet on it next year unless Nuggets can somehow get a good 3D guy to replace Cam.
Lakers remaining games are very soft. The 3rd seed is live for Denver, but far from certain.
The median scenario is probably something like:
And that scenario would have the Lakers as the #3 seed, if my math is right.
So Nuggets basically need Lakers to go 2-2 against Dallas/Warriors/Suns/Jazz and to win at least one game against OKC/Spurs.
The curveball here is whether OKC tanks against the Nuggets (so they get to avoid the Nuggets in round 2). Then the other curveball is how the Lakers perform against Dallas/GSW/Suns/Jazz.
Another curve ball is the Nuggets might lose against the G League Thunder since they always play down to the competition
If OKC wins their next 3 against Jazz, Lakers, Clippers and have #1 seed locked up they’ll almost certainly rest guys against Nuggets & Suns.
Would make no sense to risk injuries playing stars against Nuggets & Suns right before the playoffs with #1 seed already locked up.
OKC is tank-proof, roster so dam deep (thx Morey!)
You’re right. Denver plays 1 tank team and Lakers plays 3 tank teams. And Lakers has the tie breaker, so Nuggets need to win all 4 remaining games unless Lakers losses to 1 or more of the 3 tanking teams.
Lakers lost their top 2 players, and are w/o their best defender.
Their hopes now rest on a 41 yr old somehow finding his 8th prime.
Nuggs are getting that 3rd seed.
except Lakers are more or less as good as a tanking team at this point
Depends on how hard the Mavs are tanking, cause if they decide to go all out and beat the Lakers it changes everything.
They’ll play us next, then the Warriors who will still make the play in and have nothing to lose from tanking so I suppose with Curry back as well they’ll play to win, and then the Suns.
If the Mavs beat them, I think that third seed is gone tbh. If not, we’ll see.
It is not certain, but they do play OKC again and I think the Warriors will have Curry back for that game. The interesting question is will OKC and SA be sitting players against us if they have nothing to play for.
We certainly will if we lock up the first seed by then, been a brutal injury season. Would need to go 3-0 for the next three games for that to happen though, which won’t be easy with a Lakers Clippers back to back in LA.
Clippers might be tough but Lakers without AR or Luka should be easy after you already put belt to ass last game. Unless Thunder manage to get caught by a trap game.
I’m just wary when it comes to back to backs. Though it’ll help that there will be no travel in between them, I guess.
Very soft? Aren’t they facing OKC again in a few days?
Cam is a very decent 3 and D guy. So is Pswat.
I don’t think y’all have a tiny edge. Fox beat us , not you guys. It’s obvious . 0/6 from 3 , air balls , turnovers , foul that helped y’all tied it . Doubt that happens again
Yes, Fox played against the Spurs on the court and beat you.
You can tell he’s still pissed. Let it fuel you and the team, Vic
Might be harsh but in the clutch the Spurs might have to decide to leave Harper instead of Fox.
Fox is the better player now but sometimes decides to be passiv at times which kills his own rhythm.
He isnt Luka or some all time great who can decide when to switch it on/off, this might work in regular season but def not in the playoffs.
Fox must always come out aggressiv it makes the game easier for everybody.
Telling us we might have to ditch Harper for Fox after this game sure is a take. Let’s see if Fox survives his homecoming to San Antonio first.
I didnt say ditch Fox, learn to read.
Fox has a tendency to be passiv i dont know why, nor do i watch the Spurs often enough to say its their systems fault.
But i know Fox cant be guarded when he wants to but he isnt like Kyrie or Curry or players who dont need much of the ball to warm up.
Fox is miles ahead of Harper and his defense is criminally underrated but if im a coach and Fox starts a playoff game passiv thinking he can switch it back on, then i might as well gamble with Harper and see what hes got becaue one thing i know about Harper is, hes going to attack the rim no matter what for good/bad.
you definitely worded the first sentence to sound like dropping Harper, and then the first thing you do is shit talk that guy lol
So you don’t watch the Spurs enough, you can’t spell, you clearly structured whatever you were saying wrong with your first sentence, and honestly everything you typed is confusing as hell. That guy should learn to read.
Also, isn’t everyone bagging on Fox for failing to close the game out? Which is bad if he can’t have a “switch”
Three comments in a row with people insulting the previous comment, and all because this guy whiffed on the first sentence
Might be harsh but in the clutch the Spurs might have to decide to leave Harper in the game instead of Fox.
I clearly stated “in the clutch” in reference to Fox and Harper.
Yes i dont watch the Spurs they arent my fav team to watch Lol so why would i bother?
The only reason i even watch the Spurs is because i used to be Sac fan-following the Boogie/Tyreke Era, then Fox/Hali.
You are arguing with the wrong person, im one of the few who not onyl watches the Nba games but happens to have seen Fox bloom in Sac-town,
Fox can easily produce what Maxey does on the 76ers but he picks and chooses when to do it, that is my only issue with him.
The playoffs are nearing and i know what people will do when the Spurs lose, they are going to blame Fox if his stats look like tonight. He has to produce and he has the team around him to do it.
I could care less about spelling, english isnt my primary language but im glad you could feel good about that.
so dramatic lol he had one bad game, are the big tough fans like you going to kill him?
Him and JokiÄ beating the hell out of each other while having casual conversations was fun to watch. The only other guy heās like that with is Maxime Reynaud. Even Batum and Yabusele are his enemies until the game is over.
him and russ last season š
Adore these guys.Ā Eastern Conference just missing someone like that post Bron
They had lebron long enogh, LA is just a retirement package.
I am telling that. Right in 2018 when James went to West, East could had DonÄiÄ. But OK, Cade Pistons, Tatum Celtics and Haliburton Pacers are fun and very competitive teams long term
Im sorry fox sold your shit man
Wemby is such a breath of fresh air being competitive as he is, I just want him to keep lvling up and see him develop
I think Wemby really really wanted this win for his MVP case. He was great today, but he knows he came up short. Jokic is still the best in the world.
Hot take: I think Wemby is more naturally gifted
Not sure thatās even that hot. Depending on how you define natural, Wemby might be the most naturally gifted player of all time.
That sure is a hot take. He is an incredible athlete, but if he was the same height as jokic he is nowhere near as good. So if by naturally gifted you are talking about him being a foot taller then I guess you’re right.
Heās incredible because itās rare someone that tall moves and plays the way he does.
This take is insanely coldā¦ everyone thinks heās one of the most naturally gifted players. His nickname as the alien didnāt come out of nowhere
Fox and castle are gonna be the big differences in the playoffs bc if they are not hitting there threes thats a problem
Castle’s shot is a non issue since he contributes in so many ways with his defense, rebounding, playmaking, and being a downhill threat. Fox on the other hand…
Are NBA players deliberately not trimming their nails when they are about to face the Nuggets? Cause wth, why is JokiÄ always looking like he got jumped by a group of jaguars.
Heās so cute š
Crazy how few centimeters can make the differnece in narratives. If Wemby made that shot he would have had all the glaze and a clear shot for MVP.
In the latest straw poll Wemby got 8 votes I think and Shai got 88, it wouldn’t have mattered that much. MVP race is over.
They have the number one seed, it makes a lot of sense. In the hypothetical win, weāre closing the gap.
Not really?
bro thinks he’s on the team
read the name
Sure but it goes both ways. If he missed the last second shot against the Suns we wouldn’t be here in the first place.
Or if Shai missed the game winner against the Nuggets, etc.
I think it was more about experience than āa few centimetersā
There are likely several better and easier ways for a dude who is 7ā5ā tall to get 2 points than trying to take an elite defender off the dribble and shooting a poorly angled fadeaway 17 footer.
I thought Wemby tried to get too deep on the shot. if he pulled up slightly earlier he would have had a much better angle if slightly further from the basket. maybe he thought he had a chance for a practical gimme but Gordon played it about as well as he could.Ā
Thatās where the experience comes from right? He was just focused on beating Gordon not really working to create an advantage.
But I just donāt get why that was the play anyway. They had just donāt it a possession or two before just ISO for Wemby and he had to take a tough jump shot which is just, not really his game, he is shooting 38% on jump shots this season.
Regardless of what happened that mvp is sga but this game may have swayed the 2nd and 3rd places
When a former Clutch player of the year sells the game its gotta sting
Cut your fucking nails Wemby
Why do you care
Because him and other players shouldnāt be clawing flesh out of people
Wemby was let down by his team today. He had a couple lapses on defense but for the most part played great. Or guards were playing too much iso and not making the easy pass to Wemby for a lob to get some easy points.
Wemby cannot have those lapses
He’s 22 fkn yearsold bro. He isn’t gonna be perfect. You are going to set yourself up for some major disappointments if you think he is going to be this perfect defensive beast in his second full year of NBA action and his first playoffs. I hope he learns and gets better and that’s about it.
Two irl superheros going at it
Hes right these games are good for them to learn from
Wemby seems like he just loves the fight, and he got a good fight today
He loves JokiÄ, everyone knows he could be the best series ever, I want it badly, just to see him learn and adapt to the matchup
That anti-bam game
This was a good ass game. Iād like to see this in the playoffs.
The French love their anime, and I’m sure Wembanyama sees it as good old comic book rivalry.
Goku and Cell type beat.
man ā¦ I was hoping Shai wouldnāt be a lock, but there goes the MVP.
If there’s one thing I can appreciate about Wemby is that he genuinely hates to lose.
My 2 favourite players to watch and they didn’t disappoint.
Coming back later
Denver is the only team that wins games and makes the team they play happy about the loss. Everyone takes Ls from Denver as a moral victory lol
I was also having a lot of fun actually, totally didnt want to jump from my window in OT
He knows playoff vibes??
Itās a learning lesson for sure
Fox fucked it completely
Type of game you’d like to show a casual or non fan.
The fact Jokic got that turnaround and the last floater over him has to be sticking in his craw so damn bad lmao
Cut your nails fucker what is this
āGot a little bit of playoff vibesā from a guy who has never seen the playoffs btw lmao
Thatās some Shonen power fantasy nonsense
This guy is growing on me. Obviously his play puts him as one of the best talents. But, his competitive nature and ability to still be smart and humble is admirable.
this guy scares me they might win 6 rings
Maybe just me but wemby looked gassed by OT, should’ve managed his minutes a bit better
Not to sound like a dickrider but it’s actually insane how mature wemby is for a 22 year old
I donāt get it, did I say something wrong?
āPlayoff vibesā, while heās definitely right heās never been there to know š¤£
Spurs should tank so they take out the Thunder pls, it’s not fair if the Nuggets beat them before they get a chance
Except it is fair. If they can’t beat Denver they sure as hell aren’t beating okc in the playoffs.
The thunder don’t have anyone like Aaron Gordon to guard wemby, he also just plays better cus he hates chet. It’s a different matchup that I think we’re better suited for
Breaking news: nuggets fans donāt know what matchup means
Horrible take tbh. Nuggets are obviously a worst match up for the Spurs than OKC. In anyway, playoffs series between those 3 will interesting to watch.
People think too much in terms of power rankings when a lot of it comes to matchups.
Okc is a demon team for most but Wemby is a nightmare for a paint focused team with a mid range / drive focused guard star such as Shai. On the other hand Jokic is hard for spurs to ever stop and Denver has killer offense from range that can mitigate Wembys impact to shut down the paint. Then Okcs defense can make any shot from Denver a pita and they got the players to bother jokic in Caruso, Jwill, hart etc.
matchups how do they work
Denver is going to take out OKCās kryptonite for them and gift Thunder and Shai another ring
Big fan of Wemby but not sure how he can claim the game had playoff vibes when he hasn’t played in the playoffs.