SAN ANTONIO —
Recap
Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points, Paul George added 19 and the Los Angeles Clippers’ stars schooled Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama in his first road game, a 123-83 rout of San Antonio on Sunday night.
Wembanyama was held to 11 points, five rebounds, two assists and one block. He committed five of the Spurs’ season-worst 25 turnovers.
It was a letdown for Wembanyama after he scored 15 points in his NBA debut against Dallas last week. He followed up with 21 points in an overtime victory against Houston.
Russell Westbrook had 19 points and Ivica Zubac scored 16 for the Clippers, who had seven players in double figures. Westbrook and Zubac had a team-high eight rebounds apiece.
Devin Vassell led the Spurs with 14 points and Cedi Osman added 12 off the bench.
Wembanyama was the only Spurs starter on the court to start the fourth when they trailed 93-60. But he checked out for good after playing 26 minutes and clapped for his teammates from the bench.
Westbrook — the French teenager's favorite player growing up — delivered a knee to Wembanyama's thigh in the third. The 19-year-old made 1 of 2 free throws, capping a stretch in which he scored five of the Spurs' seven points to leave them trailing 77-48.
After drawing a crowd to his warmup an hour before tipoff, Wembanyama got off to a mixed start. The 7-foot-3 star had a turnover on the Spurs' first possession, blocked Zubac and then missed two free throws.
Wembanyama tapped in an alley-oop pass from Zach Collins for his only two points of the first quarter. The Spurs were down by 12 before scoring their first points in the second on Wembanyama's hook.
The Clippers led by 21 in the second quarter before Westbrook hit a 3-pointer from the left corner to send them into halftime ahead 56-37. He slapped hands with fans in the front row.
The Clippers raced to a 20-7 start, with George scoring nine points. His five steals were the most in a quarter in his career.
Pregame
Fresh off their first win of the season, a thrilling 126-122 OT victory over in-state rival Houston, the Spurs (1-1) will take on old friend Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers (1-1) Sunday night in Los Angeles.
The game represents a battle between what could have been for the organization prior to Leonard's departure and the fresh potential now in its grasp in the form of Victor Wembanyama, who once again wowed Friday's Frost Bank Center crowd even before hitting a game-tying basket en route to his first NBA win.
Speaking to media after his 21-point, 12-rebound performance, Wembanyama relished the moment while looking ahead to the three-game road trip to come.
"I'm proud of what we did tonight, but now we can really see where we can get better," he said Friday night. "We really haven't been pretty for three quarters. A win is a win but it shows that we have a lot of room to improve as a team."
Devin Vassell scored 25 points and Keldon Johnson added 20 for the Spurs against Houston, who bounced back from a season-opening loss to Dallas on Wednesday in Wembanyama's highly anticipated debut. On Friday they trailed late before the No. 1 pick helped them pull it out.
Wembanyama's layup while defended by Jabari Smith Jr. made it 111-111 all, and his jumper sent San Antonio to a 6-0 run to begin OT before they eventually clinched the win.
Series history
The Spurs have dominated Los Angeles historically, going 132-52 all-time against the Clippers. But LA, which went 44-38 last year before losing in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, was the victor in all four of the team's head-to-head matchups last season, including a 138-100 thrashing on Jan. 26 in LA.
Devin Vassell is scoring 24 points per game in the early going this season, while Wembanyama has nearly averaged a double-double through two games with 18 points and 8.5 rebounds per matchup.
Paul George is coming off a huge 36-point performance in LA's Friday loss in Utah, while Leonard has averaged 24 points and 7 rebounds through two games. The team's third major star, Russell Westbrook, has averaged just 7.5 points but also 8.5 assists and 7 rebounds to begin the campaign.
This is the teams' first matchup this season.
Injury report
Here's the latest injury report from the NBA:
Spurs:
- No players out from injury.
Clippers:
- Brandon Boston Jr.: Out, left quadriceps
- Terance Mann: Out, left ankle sprain
Check back here for updates.
Game information
When: 8 p.m. CST
Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles
How to watch: Bally Sports Southwest
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