Victor Wembanyama, Spurs 'putting Minds' Toward Breaking Bad Habits

HOUSTON — For amended aliases worse, everything was arsenic accustomed successful nan San Antonio Spurs' locker room wrong Toyota Center precocious Tuesday night.

Desserts from a section Houston edifice sat connected a array successful nan halfway while players coped pinch a blown 16-point lead against a Western Conference opponent. Victor Wembanyama, pacing successful circles, had his chemoreceptor successful a book.

"What happened to Spook?" he asked Harrison Barnes, looking up.

Barnes explained nan lore of "Mistborn" earlier Wembanyama made his measurement to an quiet chair, prepared to look questions astir nan Spurs' 14th nonaccomplishment of nan season. He went blunt.

READ MORE: All-Star Starter ‘Another Step’ successful Wembanyama’s Ascent

"Same arsenic usual," Wembanyama explained. "Blowing a 15-plus-point lead. The bully point is, we're connected to (it). We’re each putting our minds into it, but we're a conscious it is simply a problem."

On nan roadworthy against nan Houston Rockets, San Antonio expected nan protect strategy its hosts tossed out. Sending a smaller defender to disrupt Wembanyama's momentum had worked successful nan past, truthful nan Rockets hoped it would again.

“Wembanyama is simply a feline that’s continued to grow," Rockets coach Ime Udoka said pregame. "Main point is being aggressive. Going astatine him. Not being stagnant."

By nan extremity of nan 4th quarter, Houston had flooded a 16-point shortage en way to its 3rd consecutive win. Wembanyama logged a 14-point double-double, but vanished pinch nan game's lowest plus-minus. For each intents and purposes, he was a non-factor.

That's what stuck pinch Wembanyama most.

"They did what they usually do — what astir teams do," nan Frenchman said. "I conscionable wish I made much shots. I request to beryllium capable to ... thief my squad moreover erstwhile I don't make shots."

READ MORE: Through 'Dog Days,' Spurs Keeping Same Standard

The Spurs' shooting woes followed them person to nan coast, but arrived late. In nan first half, Julian Champagnie's six 3s helped create a double-digit lead earlier regressing to nan mean pinch nan remainder of his teammates, who missed 64 shots connected nan night.

"Houston did a heckuva occupation nan full 2nd half guarding us," Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. "We had a unsmooth half. We missed immoderate unfastened shots. We weren't beardown creating leads ... it was a assortment of things each crossed nan board."

The biggest facet successful violative stagnation came down to pace. San Antonio, which boasts a top-10 violative ratio standing this season, often settled for speedy 3s successful nan half tribunal alternatively of allowing plays to develop.

"We had nan crippled successful control," Stephon Castle said. "They went connected a run, and we started making immoderate bad plays connected our end."

It gave nan Spurs different point to attraction connected arsenic they proceed to improve.

"That's portion of america increasing up and becoming a amended team," Julian Champagnie said. "Figuring retired a measurement to get nan champion changeable for nan squad ... I deliberation we person to proceed to fig retired and build retired what that looks like."

READ MORE: Spurs’ Success Starts pinch Players Like Champagnie

The Spurs vanished nan crippled 14-of-50 from beyond nan arc; Champagnie's 8 makes eclipsed nan remainder of his teammates' combined. By nan clip Reed Sheppard, who vanished pinch a team-high 21 points, sewage loose, nan Rockets had already done nan protect work.

"Our full team, astatine times, sewage rushed," Johnson said. "We sewage pushed disconnected our spots ... It snowballed. They rolled nan momentum and vanished nan job."

San Antonio hasn't yet felt nan effect of its late-game collapses. Sitting astatine No. 2 successful nan Western Conference, it remains nan squad pinch a target connected its back, and immoderate of nan subconscious unit that accompanies that possibly bleeds into gameplay.

Wembanyama's consequence is to admit his team's shortcomings.

"The bully point is that thing makes you study and makes you mature for illustration 'failure,'" Wembanyama said, utilizing aerial quotes. "Like losses. Defeat. We're learning quicker, we're taking successful a batch ... we're going to fig it out. We request to mature a small bit."

READ MORE: How Coming Off Bench Benefitted Wembanyama

Champagnie looked glum facing nan media aft his 28-point outing. Keeping honest, nan guardant admitted he'd alternatively person gone scoreless if it meant a triumph for nan Spurs. In that sense, he's recovered nan maturity Wembanyama preached about.

"Shots fall, shots don't fall," he said. "That's conscionable portion of basketball."

Several times, San Antonio has acknowledged nan January "dog days" that befall each squad successful nan NBA. They effort not to autumn into their trap, but besides understand really quickly momentum tin turn. It's why "business arsenic usual" wasn't a antagonistic Tuesday night.

Circling nan locker room — his chemoreceptor buried successful a book — Wembanyama kept his routine. Keldon Johnson, livening nan abstraction pinch his roar box, did nan same.

The Spurs are moving to break their bad habits connected nan court. But not these.

"That's nan luxury of nan NBA," Castle said. "We get to spot them again adjacent week."