The San Antonio Spurs notched their 60th win of the season, with a 115-102 over the Philadelphia 76ers, but Victor Wembanyama could only contribute to half of it. 

In the second quarter, with 10:36 remaining, Victor Wembanyama collided with the Sixers’ Paul George while trying to push a fast-break opportunity. George reached in attempting a steal, and the contact left Wembanyama on the floor for several moments, clutching his left rib. He soon headed to the locker room and was replaced by Luke Kornet. Wembanyama later returned to the bench with 6:49 left in the half and briefly checked back into the game. Encouragingly, he managed to add eight points and two rebounds during that stretch after coming back.

However, with just 44.3 seconds remaining before halftime, his return was cut short again. Wembanyama headed back to the locker room and was ruled out for the remainder of the game after the team confirmed he had suffered a left rib contusion. He finished the night with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting, along with five rebounds and three blocks in roughly 16 minutes of action.
This situation, however, is not entirely unfamiliar territory for the Spurs star.

Last year, the Spurs shut down the French center in February 2025 due to a “deep vein thrombosis” (blood clot) issue in his right shoulder. This prevented him from meeting the 65-game minimum for DPOY. Even this year, Wemby has battled different injury issues, starting from a left calf strain that sidelined him for four weeks from mid-November to mid-December. Then he suffered a left knee hyperextension against the Knicks on 31 December, but it was a less worrisome injury because an MRI showed no ligament damage.

Earlier this season, he also briefly exited a February matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks after an awkward landing, though evaluations at the time revealed no structural damage. Wembanyama was back after missing just two games, and apart from this, he hasn’t missed a major chunk due to an injury. 

He’s averaging 24.6 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks, firmly putting him in MVP and DPOY conversations. He entered Monday’s contest coming off three straight games of at least 30 points, 15 rebounds, and three blocks, a streak tied for the second-longest such run since blocks began being officially tracked in 1973-74, trailing only Shaquille O’Neal’s four-game stretch in 1999.

But the awards may not be locked as the rib injury, if serious, could hamper his participation. The two-time All-Star can only miss one of the remaining three games in the regular season to meet the 65-game threshold.

Luckily, despite playing just 17 minutes tonight, the game counted towards Wembanyama’s tally. Because players are allowed two sub-20-minute appearances (with at least 15 minutes played) to still qualify toward eligibility requirements, he remained on track. But he must suit up in two of the Spurs’ three games to reach the exact mark of 65 games. 

More specifically, he now needs to log at least one more appearance of 20+ minutes to remain fully eligible for major postseason honors. Now, it will be brutal for him to miss out on awards for a second season in a row because of injuries.

Considering he is the team’s best player, exiting the same game twice would have any coach anxious. But the Spurs’ head coach seems not too concerned or even aware of what is happening with the team.

Mitch Johnson remains without answers on Victor Wembanyama’s rib injury

The media asked about an injury update for Victor Wembanyama after the game, but Mitch Johnson wasn’t sure about the diagnosis.

“I’m not sure,” the head coach said. “I know he came back, and he just didn’t finish at halftime. I was told he wasn’t coming back. And honest to God, I haven’t heard anything else up to this point. I think it would be a positive that he felt like he could come back, and he played the last four or five minutes of the half. So that’s a positive from my perspective, but I have nothing.”

The fact that the 22-year-old came back hooped again eases Johnson’s worries. But he was still unsure about the injury. Then there was a follow-up question about when Wemby will go for testing. It seemed that the head coach was annoyed by the question, but answered it anyway: “I have no other answer to what I haven’t even talked to anybody. So I’m sure we will do our due diligence to make sure he’s okay, but I have no idea.”

However, medical expectations around rib contusions are generally encouraging. According to injury analyst Jeff Stotts, the average absence for this type of injury is roughly four days, though imaging is typically required because rib injuries can be difficult to fully evaluate through X-rays alone.

They have won nine out of their last ten games (and are 30-7 at home). Following the 76ers, the Spurs will play their next game on Wednesday night when they remain in San Antonio to host the Portland Trail Blazers. But they could be without Wemby, as there is a possibility of him missing out on personal accolades.

San Antonio is also just 2.5 games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder in the race for the Western Conference’s top seed, making his availability especially significant heading into the final stretch of the regular season.