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Victor Wembanyama Talks Tying Michael Jordan with Back-to-Back 5 Steal, 5 Block Games

Andrew Peters

San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama achieved an impressive feat Friday night, joining Michael Jordan as the only other player with five steals and five blocks in back-to-back games.

For Wembanyama, the stats don't matter without a win, which he didn't get in either game.

"I wonder if he did it in wins, not losses," Wembanyama said. "To me, it's secondary. Hopefully… we can look back & think this is a good performance. As of today, I can't be satisfied with a loss."

On Thursday in the Spurs first game back from the All-Star break, Wembanyama notched 19 points, 13 rebounds, five blocks and five steals against the Sacramento Kings. He followed up that game with 27 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five blocks and five steals against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Impressive stat lines in a Spurs loss have unfortunately been a theme for Wembanyama this season. San Antonio currently sits in last place in the Western Conference at 11-46 on the year and has won just one of its last 10 games.

Amid the Spurs' struggles, Wembanyama is averaging 20.6 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. He has made a strong case for being one of the best defensive players in the NBA already, leading the league in blocks with 3.3 per game and also collecting 1.3 steals per game.

Wembanyama also joined a Spurs legend David Robinson and Shaquille O'Neal as the only rookies to reach 1,000 points, 150 blocks and 150 assists through 50 games.

Wembanyama made it clear that while he might enjoy putting up big numbers, they mean nothing to him without a win. If the Spurs' young core can figure things out, the wins will likely start to come eventually.

   

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