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San Antonio Spurs to face Chicago Bulls without Victor Wembanyama

Wembanyama will return to play against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday

File - San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, who is out with a knee contusion, reacts to a play during the second half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, in Dallas. Dallas won 110-93. (AP Photo/Jeffrey McWhorter) (Jeffrey Mcwhorter, Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

When the San Antonio Spurs announced on Tuesday that Victor Wembanyama would miss Wednesday’s game against the Chicago Bulls, questions arose about how the team would handle his absence.

On Wednesday, after the team’s shootaround, it was confirmed that Wembanyama would likely not be available until Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans.

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Wembanyama would be missing the game due to back soreness.

Focusing on the immediate challenge against the Bulls, San Antonio Spurs players Devin Vassell and Julian Champagnie shared how they plan to adjust defensively, particularly against Bulls center Nikola Vucevic, who is averaging 21 points and 10 rebounds per game this season.

“Just play fast with him, play aggressive, that’s really just what it is,” said Champagnie. “I mean, he’s a big guy. Obviously, he can shoot the ball a lot. It’ll be a tough cover, but we’ll just play hard, stunt, make him think about it a little bit.”

“Yeah, for sure. I mean, we can’t go into any game, you know, disrespecting our opponents, so you know, tonight it starts, step one,” said Vassell. “Obviously, we have a back-to-back, but you know Chicago, we gotta get a win; that’s a must-win for us. That’s what we’ve been preaching all day, so just one game at a time.”

The San Antonio Spurs will face off against the Chicago Bulls at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.


About the Authors
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Nick Mantas is a KSAT 12 Sports Editor. He has previously worked in Lansing, San Fransisco and Abilene. Nick earned a Master's Degree in Sports Media from Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism and a Bachelor's degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Arizona, where he also interned as a strength and conditioning coach.

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