‘I got the green light from the Spurs’ medical staff just (on Friday),’ Wembanyama told French sports outlet L’Equipe. “Phew, I’ll finally be able to play a bit of basketball again.’
The 2023-24 NBA rookie of the year played in 46 games last season, averaging 24.3 points, 11 rebounds, 3.8 blocks, 3.7 assists and 1.1 steals and shooting 47.6% from the field, 35.2% on 3-pointers and 83.6% on free throws.
He was on his way to winning Defensive Player of the Year and All-NBA when the team announced on Feb. 20 that “Wembanyama has been diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder. The condition was discovered when Wembanyama returned to San Antonio following the All-Star Game in San Francisco. Wembanyama is expected to miss the remainder of the 2024-25 regular season. The team will provide updates as appropriate.”
The Spurs were 34-48 last season and drafted Dylan Harper with the No. 2 pick and Carter Bryant with the No. 14 pick in the 2025 draft. They also acquired De’Aaron Fox from Sacramento at the trade deadline in February and are looking to make a jump in the Western Conference standings with Mitch Johnson taking over as coach,
Johnson replaces Hall of Famer Gregg Popovich who stepped down in May amid health problems. He sustained a stroke in November and did not return to the bench as coach. He remains part of the organization as president of basketball operations.