Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama gets unflattering James Harden comparison after Game 5 egg

Victor Wembanyama’s elite performance in Game 4 may have been quickly overshadowed by a disappointing Game 5 showing, in which his San Antonio Spurs lost and fell behind 3-2 in the Western Conference Finals.

Two days after tallying 33 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks, Wembanyama had one of his worst playoff games to date: He went 4-for-15 from the field, including 0-5 on threes, and had 20 points, 6 rebounds, one assist, and three blocks.

The single assist stood out to some observers, including data analyst Iztok Franko, who made a less-than-flattering comparison to perennial playoff underachiever James Harden.

“We’ve seen Harden’s assists to turnover stats floating around throughout the playoffs,” Franko posted on X, formerly Twitter. “Victor Wemanyama had only 1 assist and 2 turnovers last night. He had as many (or more) turnovers as assists in 9 of 15 games in the playoffs and is averaging 2.8 turnovers and 2.8 assists.

“This is Wemby on passing/playmaking after Game 3: ‘I need to be more of a team player, facilitate better, rebound the ball better, push their defense a little bit further and see how much they need to help with my teammates and [then] feed them.'”

Wembanyama has improved his turnover percentage year-over-year in the NBA; after a sky-high 16.2% as a rookie, the figure dropped to 13.7% in Year 2, and 10.8% this season. In the playoffs, though, his TO% has jumped back up to 13.5%. Additionally, his assist percentage, which has decreased year-over-year, has fallen slightly from its 17.6% regular-season mark to 14.6% in the postseason.

The Spurs will certainly need Wembanyama at his best come Game 6 on Thursday. In their two wins this series, Wembanyama is averaging 39 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks per game. In the losses, he is averaging 22 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks per game.

Game 6 is scheduled to tip off at approximately 7:30 p.m. CT on Thursday in San Antonio.

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