We suspected it given their performances over the past two months, and obviously their record, but there is a world of difference between the Celtics and the Spurs. This night, the teammates of Victor Wembanyama never led the score, and they took on water from the 20th minute. The Boston squad is dense, everyone speaks the same basketball, and Joe Mazzulla can count on a rotation of 10 players. Enough to really impress Gregg Popovich after this new setback of around thirty points (134-101).
“This is an NBA championship-caliber team, that’s their goal, and they proved it once again,” recalls San Antonio coach. “Joe does a good job with them. They have good talent obviously, with All-Stars, but they also have character. They have the mentality, the execution and they are always improving. “It’s a difficult challenge for our group to face at this time.”
A new lesson to learn
It was also a personal challenge for Victor Wembanyama since he was able to measure himself against what is best this season, and in particular a complementary and experienced pair of interiors in Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford. The two had blocked access to the circle, and Wembanyama had to light from distance: 8 winning shots. His biggest total in almost two months. In just 24 minutes.
“I feel that compared to previous years, they have something more this year,” explains the French. “And of course it's difficult to play against them and it's a good challenge. But I think we learned today. They make very few mistakes, and that's motivating. »
