San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama was a late scratch from the lineup on Saturday after sustaining what coach Gregg Popovich described as a “freak accident.”
Wembanyama appeared to roll his right ankle during a pre-game warmup on the court. He finished making a layup against a team training staff member and then stepped on the foot of a Dallas Mavericks employee standing nearby on the baseline.
The No. 1 pick went back to the locker room after the incident to get his foot examined. He returned to the court to test the ankle but was eventually ruled out of playing by the team.
“He was warming up and came down on a ball boy’s foot and tweaked his ankle again,” Popovich said. “He probably could have played. If it was a playoff game, I probably would have played him.”
The contest on Saturday was the third that Wembanyama has missed this season due to injury. He missed his first game on Dec. 1 due to hip tightness and then played in the next six games before sitting on Tuesday because of right ankle soreness.
The 7-footer returned to play on Thursday but was placed on a minute restriction against the Chicago Bulls. He scored seven points, five rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals in 22 minutes, which broke a streak of eight consecutive double-double efforts.
“He isn’t happy about it, but I would rather err on the conservative side since it is the same ankle that he just got a time limitation on,” Popovich said. “Just a freak accident before the game.”
Wembanyama is averaging 18.5 points, 10.7 rebounds, three blocks, 2.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 25 games this season. He leads all rookies in scoring and is tied with Chet Holmgren for the second-most blocks in the league (74).
Story originally appeared on Rookie Wire
