Victor Wembanyama played in the NBA Cup final against the Knicks with a heavy heart.
The San Antonio Spurs star was moved to tears during his postgame press conference because of a loss in his personal life.
“Sorry, I just lost somebody today,” Wembanyama said from the podium at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Wembanyama learned before Tuesday night’s 124-113 loss to the Knicks that his grandmother died in France, according to The Athletic.
The 21-year-old center scored 18 points with six rebounds in 25 minutes during Tuesday’s final, which was Wembanyama’s second game back from a calf strain that kept him out for a month.
Wembanyama came off the bench and played on a minutes restriction. He also came off the bench in the semifinal round of the in-season tournament and helped lead the Spurs to a 111-109 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
For the season, the 7-4 Wembanyama is averaging 25.8 points, 12.6 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game.
CLUTCH KOLEK
One of the surprise stars in the Knicks’ first-ever NBA Cup championship was backup point guard Tyler Kolek.
Kolek played most of the game’s final 17 minutes, including the bulk of the fourth quarter, and made numerous plays for the Knicks in crunch time.
Those included a nifty assist on OG Anunoby dagger’s 3-pointer in the corner that gave the Knicks an eight-point lead with less than two minutes remaining.
Kolek finished with a career-high 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting, five rebounds and five assists in 20 minutes, and he committed only one turnover. His +14 was the third-best plus/minus on the Knicks.
“He played big time,” Jalen Brunson said. “I’m very happy for him. Maybe a surprise to a bunch of people, but none of you guys see how hard this kid works, and just very happy for him and the way he played tonight. Helped us, for sure. We needed him.”
Kolek, a second-round pick in 2024, has not been a regular part of coach Mike Brown’s rotation for much of the season, but he played alongside Brunson — and in place of Mikal Bridges — down the stretch.
ADVICE FOR OG
Anunoby’s sharp-shooting was essential to the Knicks’ victory, as he scored a game-high 28 points on 10-of-17 field goals, including 5-of-10 on 3-point attempts.
It was fitting that NBA on Prime analyst Dirk Nowitzki was in the building, as Nowitzki said on the pregame broadcast that Anunoby reached out to him last year to ask for shooting advice.
“He wanted to know every little detail about feet, about positioning of hands, of breathing, of where eyes go,” said Nowitzki, a Hall of Famer who spent his full 21-season career with the Dallas Mavericks.
“He asked me all sorts of questions. One main thing I told him about is the finger position on the ball. When I shot the ball, I liked to spread my fingers as wide as I could.”
Anunoby is shooting a career-best 40.8% on 3-pointers this season.
CAUGHT IN THE ACT
Josh Hart went viral Tuesday for poking Brunson in the backside with his thumb during the Knicks’ on-court trophy celebration.
Cameras caught the subtle jab, which Brunson reacted to by spinning around and looking at Hart.
Hart didn’t make eye contact with Brunson in the moment but appeared to address the prank afterward by writing on social media, “Damn in 4k…..”
“IT WAS AI,” Hart added in a separate post.
Of course, Hart and Brunson go back to their college days at Villanova, where they helped lead the Wildcats to a national championship in 2016. Brunson won another there two years later.
Hart and Brunson now co-host the “Roommates Show” podcast and have a very jokey relationship.
