In his first playoff run, Victor Wembanyama already has entered his name into the record books.
The San Antonio Spurs star broke the NBA’s official record for blocks in a playoff game in Game 1 of his team’s series against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday.
Wembanyama swatted an Anthony Edwards finger-roll at the basket early in the fourth quarter for his 11th block, surpassing the previous record of 10, which was shared by Hakeem Olajuwon, Mark Eaton and Andrew Bynum.
It’s worth noting that Wilt Chamberlain did have a 16-block game in the post-season, but it came before 1973-74, when blocks became an official NBA stat.
As for the 22-year-old Wembanyama, he also had racked up 11 rebounds and five assists, helping to make up for a quiet scoring night, with just eight points on 4-of-13 shooting at the time of his record-setting 11th rejection.
Wembanyama, in Year 3, has been stellar throughout his first NBA post-season experience, averaging 21.0 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steals and a league-leading 4.0 blocks entering Monday. He’s done so on just 28.0 minutes per game and with a 65.6 effective field goal percentage.
The French phenom entered the playoffs on the heels of a standout campaign, averaging 25.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.0 steals and an NBA-leading 3.1 blocks through 64 games. Wembanyama earned his second consecutive all-star nod and, presumably, his first of many Defensive Player of the Year awards.