Victor Wembanyama out for season: Impact on Spurs, future - ESPN

One by one, the San Antonio Spurs strolled into the Moody Center on Thursday afternoon for a shootaround, minutes after the Phoenix Suns left the floor.

One notable absence stood out: generational superstar Victor Wembanyama, who didn't accompany the team to Austin, Texas, for its two-game set against the Suns and Detroit Pistons. As the team warmed up on the floor, San Antonio's brass geared up behind the scenes to drop a bombshell announcement that Wembanyama would likely miss the rest of the 2024-25 regular season because of deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder.

When Wembanyama last spoke on Sunday night in San Francisco to close out NBA All-Star Weekend, he discussed wanting to "forget a little bit about basketball for 48 hours."

Within that span, he received the diagnosis.

"[It's] tough more than anything for all of us, knowing how much he means to our team," point guard Chris Paul said. «But more so knowing how much he means to the game and how much he loves to play.»

The first-time All-Star was named the unanimous Rookie of the Year last season and finished as a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year. He was the favorite to take home the defensive award this season, leading the league with 3.8 blocks per game.

Just last month, Wembanyama played a pair of games in his native France, and both contests sold out within 24 hours, the NBA announced, and fans from 53 countries and territories purchased tickets — a record for any NBA event.

In just his second season, Wembanyama was rising to global superstar status. On Saturday, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards was asked whether he saw himself as a future face of the NBA when the current generation retires.

«No, not really,» the three-time All-Star