Spurs shut down Victor Wembanyama over blood clot in shoulder
AUSTIN, Texas — San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama is expected to miss the remainder of the season with deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder, the team announced Thursday.
The Spurs said in a statement that the condition, a form of a blood clot, was discovered after Wembanyama returned to San Antonio after the All-Star Game. The condition is typically treated with blood-thinning medication, which usually precludes a player from participating in a contact sport such as basketball.
A team source told ESPN that the Spurs are optimistic that Wembanyama will make a full recovery by the beginning of the 2025-26 season.
Wembanyama, the reigning Rookie of the Year and a first-time All-Star this season, was averaging 24.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and a league-leading 3.8 blocks in 46 games for the 23-29 Spurs.
He will not be eligible for All-NBA, Defensive Player of the Year and other major awards because Wembanyama did not meet the 65-game minimum. Wembanyama had been a -2000 favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year at ESPN BET prior to the Spurs announcement.
The team said in its statement that updates on Wembanyama’s condition would be provided as appropriate.
Wembanyama had already taken 403 3-pointers and blocked 176 shots this season. No player in NBA history has ever finished a season with those numbers, and Wembanyama did it before the All-Star break.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
The NBA has suspended Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis for 25 games for violating the league’s anti-drug policy, the league announced Thursday, a ban that sidelines the 2021 champion for the majority of the remainder of the season.
Portis tested positive for the drug tramadol, a medication used to treat severe pain among adults. It is an instance that his representative, Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports, said was an accident.
“I am devastated for Bobby right now because he made an honest mistake and the ramifications of it are incredibly significant,” Bartelstein told ESPN.
“Bobby unintentionally took a pain medication called tramadol, thinking he was taking a pain medication called Toradol. Toradol is an approved pain medication that he has used previously and that teams and players use for pain and inflammation at times. Tramadol, however, is not an approved pain medication and was just recently added to the banned substance list this past spring. The tramadol pill he took came from an assistant of his, with a valid prescription for the painkiller, which he mistakenly told Bobby was Toradol. This was, again, an honest mistake that was made because of the similarity in the names of the drugs and the fact they both serve a very similar purpose. Bobby was using this anti-inflammatory pain-reducing medication to deal with an elbow injury he had this past fall and believed he was taking Toradol to alleviate some pain in preparation for that night’s game.”
Portis will not appeal the suspension, Bartelstein said.
The suspension is a devastating blow to the Bucks, who are in fifth place in the Eastern Conference at 29-24 and now lose one of the NBA’s premier sixth men. The Bucks have one open roster spot to make an immediate move while Portis will lose $2.85 million with the 25-game suspension.
Portis will be eligible to return on April 8 against the Minnesota Timberwolves — with four games left in the regular season.
Portis has averaged 13.7 points and 8.3 rebounds in 46 games, ranking sixth in scoring and second in boards off the bench among NBA players. He has finished top 3 in voting for the Sixth Man of the Year award over the past two seasons, and he has totaled the second-most points for a reserve in the past three years.
LOS ANGELES — It took only three games with LeBron James and Luka Doncic as teammates before the Lakers had to answer the question: Who gets the last shot?
Wednesday, it was James. The 22-year veteran missed two potential game-tying 3-pointers in the waning seconds of the Lakers’ 100-97 loss to the Charlotte Hornets.
Doncic, who threw the inbounds pass to James with 6.3 seconds left, setting up the first shot, said their roles are interchangeable.
“He had it going, so obviously we’re going to go to him,” Doncic said. “I think it will go both ways. One time it’s going to be him, one time me. So I think it depends how the game is going.”
Before his final two misses — the last falling short at the buzzer after Gabe Vincent grabbed the offensive rebound following James’ first missed 3 and fed him again — James had scored 16 points in the fourth quarter on 6-for-8 shooting, including 2-for-3 from 3. Doncic, meanwhile, had scored five points in the fourth on 2-for-5 shooting.
“As a coach, you’re excited that you have two guys that can be the passer and be the guy who gets the pass,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said of the late-game dynamic between James and Doncic. “But it felt like LeBron, particularly in the fourth, just found a nice rhythm, and I felt really comfortable with that. And we got two good looks.”
James said he “felt pretty good” with the play call to get him the ball for a 3 above the break. He had just made one with 6.8 seconds remaining to cut the Hornets’ lead from four to one at 98-97.
“We run the set that JJ draws up,” James said of being the guy to take the last shot Wednesday. “You execute it. And we executed it. We just didn’t make it.”
James finished with his typical production — 26 points on 10-for-22 shooting, 11 assists, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks — but the Lakers struggled overall against the Hornets.
Doncic nearly posted a triple-double with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists, but he shot 5-for-18 with 6 turnovers. Austin Reaves shot 3-for-9 before being ejected late in the third quarter for picking up two quick technical fouls from referee Rodney Mott. Rui Hachimura scored 17 points but shot 1-for-8 from 3 and missed two free throws with 37.7 seconds left that could have tied the score.
“Obviously, it’s going to take a little time,” Doncic said. “Today, a lot of rustiness for my part. Started the game with like four or five turnovers. That can’t happen. So just got to play basketball the right way.”
Los Angeles shot a season-high 51 times from beyond the 3-point arc and made just 15 (29.4%).
“I thought our effort and competitive spirit was good enough to win,” Redick said. “Just we were really poor offensively for 90% of the game.”
James, playing on a left ankle injury that held him out of the All-Star Game, pointed out that Doncic was playing in only his third game since Christmas because of a strained left calf injury.
“He still doesn’t know all the plays. He doesn’t know all the defensive coverages, all the signals and things that we’ve built since September,” James said. “So obviously we’re trying to fast-track it on the fly. He’s coming back from his injury. He’s getting back into form. So we’re all working through it together.”
ESPN
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San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama is expected to miss the rest of the 2024-2025 regular season due to a shoulder injury, the team announced Thursday. The All-Star center has been diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in the right shoulder, per the team.
Wembanyama’s condition, which refers to a blood clot in a vein located deep in the body, was discovered when he return to San Antonio after participating in the All-Star Game in San Francisco this past weekend. The French national played on Team Chuck, a team made up of the league’s international stars.
The team did not provide a specific timeline, saying only that he was “expected to miss” the rest of the regular season. Deep vein thrombosis typically occurs in the legs, but can affect other parts of the body.
Last weekend marked Wembanyama’s first All-Star appearance since arriving in the league last season. The 21-year-old sensation had a dominant first season, picking up Rookie of the Year and leading the league in blocks.
This season, Wembanyama had been averaging 24.3 points and 11 rebounds per game, while also contributing 3.8 blocks and 1.1 steals per game on the defensive end. He leads the NBA in blocks with 176.
The Spurs currently sit toward the bottom of the Western Conference with a 23-29 record. As of now, their playoff chances are slim — and even slimmer without Wembanyama on the court.
The team announced Thursday that Wembanyama’s season is over due to deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder
More NBA news
Spurs star Victor Wembanyama to miss remainder of NBA season with blood clot
BREAKING: Spurs star Victor Wembanyama to miss remainder of NBA season with blood clot
Spurs star Victor Wembanyama to miss remainder of NBA season with blood clot
San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama will miss the remainder of the season with a blood clot in his right shoulder, the team announced Thursday.
“The condition was discovered when Wembanyama returned to San Antonio following the All-Star Game in San Francisco,” the Spurs said in a statement.
Wembanyama, a 21-year-old center, is already considered one of the premier big men in the league today. He was averaging 24.3 points, 11 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 3.6 blocks a game for San Antonio this season.
The Spurs are 23-29, 12th in the Western Conference.
Wembanyama, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft, entered the NBA as arguably the greatest basketball prospect since LeBron James in 2003.
The Frenchman won NBA Rookie of the Year honors last season after averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.6 blocks, 1.8 3-pointers and 1.2 steals a game. He was the first player with at least 1,500 points, 700 rebounds, 250 assists, 250 blocks and 100 made 3-pointers in a season.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Greg Rosenstein is the sports editor for NBC News Digital.
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