NBA superstar Victor Wembanyama was concussed early in a huge blow for San Antonio as they suffered a shock loss to Portland in game two of their Western Conference first-round playoffs series.
Shortlisted for the NBA MVP award, the French centre was forced out of the game after tumbling face-first in the second quarter of Tuesday’s 106-103 home defeat which tied the series at 1-1.
Wembanyama’s return to action timeline is uncertain and his continued absence would be an enormous loss for the second-seeded Spurs as game three looms on Friday in Portland.
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“He has a concussion. He’s in the protocol,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “We’ll take the proper and appropriate steps.”
Under league guidelines, a player in the concussion protocol must have at least 48 hours of inactivity and recovery and then hit several benchmarks without symptoms before being cleared to play.
Wembanyama, who is expected to sign a max contract extension worth up to $450 million (AUD), had five points, four rebounds, one blocked shot and one assist in 12 minutes before his fall after he was fouled by Jrue Holiday, having spun around the point guard in the paint.
Portland’s Scoot Henderson had a game-high 31 points, while Australian Olympian Matisse Thybulle made a crucial defensive play for the Trailblazers on the final shot of the game.
In Los Angeles, 41-year-old LeBron James had 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists as he led his short-handed Los Angeles Lakers to a 101-94 win over the Houston Rockets and a stunning 2-0 lead in their Western Conference series.
Marcus Smart had 25 points and seven assists for the Lakers, who have twice overcome the absences of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves with a team effort led by James.
Los Angeles did it again in game two despite the return of Rockets superstar Kevin Durant, who scored just three of his 23 points in the second half against the Lakers’ tenacious defence.
In Boston, V.J. Edgecombe had 30 points and 10 rebounds while playing through pain after taking a hard fall early in the game, Tyrese Maxey scored 29 points and Philadelphia beat Boston 111-97 to tie their Eastern Conference series at 1-1.
Edgecombe connected on six of the 76ers’ 19 three-pointers on Tuesday. Maxey also had nine assists as the Sixers bounced back after getting blown out 123-91 in Game 1.
The series shifts to Philadelphia for game three on Friday.
Jaylen Brown led the hosts with 36 points, while Jayson Tatum added 19 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists.
Philadelphia were again without centre Joel Embiid as he continues to go through a strength and conditioning program following an appendectomy on April 9.
