San Antonio Spurs star center Victor Wembanyama will not play in the second half of Monday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers after suffering a left rib contusion during a first-half collision with the 76ers’ Paul George.
Wembanyama went to the Spurs’ locker room twice in the second quarter after the collision but finished the half on the court. He scored 17 points, took five rebounds and had three blocked shots in more than 16 minutes of court time, which counts as an official game for the purpose of postseason award consideration.
Wembanyama, 22, is in the mix for Most Valuable Player in his third year in the NBA. He entered the game averaging 24.9 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.1 assists and a league-high 3.1 blocks per game.
Monday was Wembanyama’s 63rd game of the season. Players must appear in 65 games to qualify for postseason awards. The Spurs have three games remaining after Monday.
