Everybody was over the moon with Victor Wembanyama after his brief and dominant performance during the San Antonio Spurs ' upset win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in their NBA Cup semifinals showdown recently.
But after his controversial "ethical" basketball comments after the game, Wemby has received plenty of criticism for taking a shot at the Thunder. The issue has dragged on for days, and during Friday's NBA on Prime studio show, former Miami Heat captain Udonis Haslem made sure his opinion on the subject was known.
"You can't whine your way, you can't cry your way, you can't beg your way to a championship. None of that. That's not happening," said Haslem. "I'm not sure if he's talking about OKC, but I wanna hear none of that when it comes to OKC. Stop it! That's what I want to tell people at home. Like a tush push, stop it."
After a month-long absence due to a strained left calf, Wembanyama suited up for his team's highly anticipated showdown against the defending NBA champions in Las Vegas. Because it was his first game back, coach Mitch Johnson made Wemby come off the bench and play just 21 total minutes.
But the extraterrestrial finished with 21 points on 6-11 shooting, including 9-12 from the free throw line while also grabbing 9 rebounds, issuing 2 assists, and blocking 2 shots. Wemby was a game high +21 in plus/minus during the game, and was without doubt the difference-maker in the game.
However, during his post-game interview, Wembanyama expressed his gratitude for being part of a group that is growing beautifully and a team that plays pure and ethical basketball. Without Vic explaining his statement, many felt it was a shot at the OKC Thunder, who have been criticized for flopping and foul-baiting plays.
Not surprisingly, with the basketball community up in arms, Wembanyama was quick to clarify his statement, saying it was not about SGA or the Thunder, but rather about the different styles of play currently existing in the league.
"In modern basketball, we see a lot of brands of basketball that don't offer much variety in the dangers they pose to the opponents. Lots of isolation ball and, sometimes, kind of forced basketball. We try to propose a brand of basketball that can be described as more old school sometimes, the Spurs way as well. So it's tactically more correct basketball, in my opinion," he said .
The explanation makes sense. But if that's what Wemby meant after beating the Thunder, it doesn't add up. Even if he does not admit it, he was clearly taking a shot at OKC. However, looking at the picture, it's great to see some animosity between today's young stars and young teams because players today have been accused of being too friendly with even their rivals. Wemby is definitely proving that wrong.
Related: Chet Holmgren says he's never really spoken to Victor Wembanyama: "Not a full sentence"
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Dec 20, 2025, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
