“I have hundreds of questions to ask Kevin Durant”
“Honestly, I don’t know… I’ll have to watch the match again”. Scored 18 of his 22 points after the break against the Rockets, Victor Vembanyama He doesn’t really have an explanation for his rise to power.
The Spurs pivot admits that his teammates’ 3-point skills gave him more space, but also that the Rockets changed their strategy after the break.
“They changed five, and I felt like they wanted to score a little bit more. They put more forwards in, and I think their individual defense suffered. So it was a little bit more open.” he analyzes.
Worried by the Suns and Lakers, is he starting to better understand this new type of defense?
“Of course we see trends. It’s a matter of experience. “There’s a difference between never facing this type of defense before and now, three or four games later. answers Vemba. “We’re trying to understand, I’m trying to understand. There will be ups and downs, but it will only get better.”
Limit offensive rebounds
However, against a solid and experienced team, the Spurs physically beat the Rockets, and that is what the Frenchman especially remembers. “I think our defense has been consistently good. We conceded 50 points in the first half and that’s good.” he emphasizes. “We knew half-court defense wasn’t going to be a problem. The problem was rebounding. We had to focus on that, and even if we did, they had a few more offensive rebounds. Steven Adams took three. That’s below his average, but that was one of our priorities, and it’s a collective effort.”
And then, every derby against the Rockets is now an opportunity to challenge Kevin Durant, one of his models.
“The relationship I have with him is that of an adversary. Although I have hundreds of questions to ask him, I guess I’ll wait until he retires.” he smiled. “More seriously, he’s someone I respect, a player I respect, and I’m extremely interested in him. But our relationship is only adversarial.”
https://vvv.youtube.com/vatch?v=I6SCCi8kC_s
| Victor Vembanyama | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saison | The team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | LF | Off | Def | That | Pd | Ft | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2023-24 | A DREAM | 71 | 30 | 46.5 | 32.5 | 79.6 | 2.3 | 8.4 | 10.6 | 3.9 | 2.2 | 1.2 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 21.4 |
| 2024-25 ☆ | DREAM | 46 | 33 | 47.6 | 35.2 | 83.6 | 1.8 | 9.2 | 11.0 | 3.7 | 2.3 | 1.1 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 24.3 |
| 2025-26 | A DREAM | 6 | 34 | 52.7 | 28.6 | 79.2 | 1.8 | 11.8 | 13.7 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 1.3 | 2.5 | 4.7 | 26.7 |
How to read statistics? MJ = matches played; Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / 3 points in an attempt; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive jump; Tot = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; Points = Points.
2025-11-08 08:10:00
