Hector Ledesma Articles - Page 14

The numbers are historic and the achievements continue to resonate across the NBA. Already putting up stats uncommon for rookies in their first month, San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyma, in just his 20th NBA game, reached the 20/20 mark. The 19-year-old’s 21 points and 20 rebounds in Friday’s 121-112 loss to the Chicago Bulls […]

The San Antonio Spurs have matched the kind of franchise history they’d rather not. A 121-112 loss to the Chicago Bulls is their 16th in a row. That matches a streak set just last year as the longest the team has ever endured. Here are three key takeaways from a game the Spurs can now […]

A week ago – with the San Antonio Spurs losing streak at 13 and with the ‘fill-in’ games in the wake of the In-Season Tournament recently announced – Spurs fans may have circled December 8 vs. the Chicago Bulls. With the Atlanta Hawks, New Orleans Pelicans and Minnesota Timberwolves all looming, perhaps San Antonio’s skid […]

San Antonio Spurs rookie phenom Victor Wembanyama described his team’s struggles in Wednesday’s 102-94 loss at the Minnesota Timberwolves along tough terms. “Screws up,” “bad on offense,” “lack of experience,” “we’re supposed to be able to play in any condition,” were just some of the words he used to describe the team’s 15th consecutive loss, […]

When pairings were announced in the wake of pool play in the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament, San Antonio Spurs guard Tre Jones admits some his teammates weren’t too thrilled about a December trip up north. But Wednesday night’s game at the Minnesota Timberwolves represents a homecoming for the fourth year point guard. “No, it never […]

Apparently, it’s never too early for San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama to start thinking about life after basketball. Just 19 years old, the generational prospect whom multiple current NBA stars say will change the game, still has an entire career on the court in front of him. But he’s not ACTING like someone who’s […]

Not many folks associated with the San Antonio Spurs in any way – not the front office, the coaches and players, or the fans – have to think long and hard about the last time the team was on this kind of a losing streak. Before Victor Wembanyama got to Texas, head coach Gregg Popovich […]

“Of course, yeah.” That’s how San Antonio Spurs star rookie Victor Wembanyama answered when asked following Monday’s practice if he’ll play in the team’s next game Wednesday at Minnesota. The first pick of this summer’s draft missed the first game of his NBA career on Friday in a 121-106 loss at the New Orleans Pelicans. […]

With the first full month of his rookie season behind him, Victor Wembanyama reflected on the first five weeks (the San Antonio Spurs season tipped off the year on October 25) of his NBA career. Victor Wembanyama’s injury to end the month Wemby’s first injury of his career in the NBA coincided with the end […]

You don’t have to go very far down the list of former San Antonio Spurs to find Patty Mills when debating fan favorites. The 6-foot-2 Atlanta Hawks guard quickly won San Antonians over with his towel-waving enthusiasm from the moment he signed in March of 2012. Two seasons later, he proved an integral part in […]

It may symbolize his season to this point. San Antonio Spurs point guard Jeremy Sochan played his best game of the season, maybe the best game of his very young career. And yet, a key play — a charge call drawn by Trae Young — that didn’t go the Spurs way is what ultimately sticks […]

It’s been a recurring theme for the San Antonio Spurs and it hit again on Thursday night vs. the Atlanta Hawks. The Silver and Black got out to a double digit lead only to lose it and the game. The 137-135 loss to the Hawks ties the second longest losing streak in franchise history. The […]

With former San Antonio Spurs All-Star Dejounte Murray back in San Antonio, ClutchPoints spoke exclusively with the 27-year-old Atlanta Hawks guard. Murray hasn’t held back in describing his time with the franchise that drafted him in 2016. While he has praised the organization, he has also been brutally honest at times about his stint with […]

A peek up at the rafters of the San Antonio Spurs home arena reveals a couple of noticeable absences. Gone are the jerseys of Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. The reason, though widely assumed considering both recently entered the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, was officially given on Wednesday. The Spurs are holding a […]

For the first time in nearly 45 years, the San Antonio Spurs will face the Chicago Bulls more than twice in the same season. The scheduling anomaly comes as a result of the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament. After four games of pool play, the Spurs and Bulls are among the 24 teams that failed to […]

And the San Antonio Spurs most pleasant surprise so far in the 2023-24 campaign is…. Actually, there’s no need for a drum roll. Despite all the hype and fanfare, yes, Victor Wembanyama is the Spurs most pleasant surprise this season. After all, a surprise can be defined as ‘an astonishing event’, and well, Wembanyama’s play […]

It’s morphed from a debate into a fight. Maybe not the physical type, but with tons of passion. Whether Jeremy Sochan or Tre Jones should start at point guard has become that intense among San Antonio Spurs fans. It should be noted that Jones plays 24 minutes a game. That’s four and a half less […]

Following the San Antonio Spurs most recent game, Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic didn’t hold back on his effusive praise for Victor Wembanyama. “He’s going to change the game, 100 percent. He’s already on that path, so just enjoy and watch the show and let the guy change the game,” Jokic shared That came from […]

For the better part of a three week stretch near the start of the season, most San Antonio Spurs games fell into one of two categories. Either, they lost big or they lost a big lead. Their last three contests have taken a slightly different route. The Silver and Black lost all three, but against […]

San Antonio Spurs big man Zach Collins doesn’t need a reminder that he’s made just one of his last 11 attempts from 3-point territory. He might know, specifically, that he’s shooting 27 percent from beyond the arc this season. And he probably wouldn’t be surprised to hear that he’s taken more 3-pointers than two of […]

The San Antonio Spurs lost to the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets 132-120 on Sunday, but there were still some interesting Victor Wembanyama takeaways from the Frenchman’s first matchup with two-time MVP Nikola Jokic. As fascinating as it is to watch rookie phenom Victor Wembanyama now, what’s often heard are comments along the lines of, […]

The San Antonio Spurs know a thing or two about outrageously good stat lines. Of the four players in NBA history who’ve recorded quadruple-doubles, two of them played for the Silver and Black. Victor Wembanyama hasn’t joined that selective class, but outings like the team’s most recent game against the Denver Nuggets suggest he may […]

San Antonio Spurs starting point guard Jeremy Sochan did not play in the second half of the 132-120 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Sunday night. The team said last year’s ninth overall pick of the NBA Draft was held out because of left knee soreness. Following the game, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich stated […]

San Antonio Spurs legends Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and David Robinson presented him into the Naismith Hall of Fame this summer. Had a fifth chair been set next to the podium during Gregg Popovich’s enshrinement speech, it’s not a bad assumption that it wouldn’t have been reserved for Kawhi Leonard. But Pop’s legacy […]

For a second straight game, Victor Wembanyama – not Wembanyana – and the San Antonio Spurs stayed close but couldn’t get over the hump against a Western Conference team expected to contend. A 118-112 loss at the Golden State Warriors is the Spurs 11th straight loss, though Wemby was again solid. Wembanyama scored 22 points, […]

He’s certainly not the San Antonio Spurs most high profile figure. He’s not their leading scorer, nor is he their best defensive player. In fact, even though he’s just 23 years old, no one expects him to be the team’s go-to guy in the future. But, right now, and perhaps, for this entire season, Devin […]

A day that started with one of the San Antonio Spurs’ best players telling the media that the team held a players-only meeting ended with head coach Gregg Popovich taking the public address announcer’s microphone during that night’s game vs. the Los Angles Clippers to chastise fans for booing former Spurs star Kawhi Leonard. The […]

In a stunning move, San Antonio Spurs Hall of Fame coach Gregg Popovich grabbed the public address announcer’s microphone during the second quarter of Wednesday night’s game versus the Los Angeles Clippers at the Frost Bank Center. With former Spurs star Kawhi Leonard at the free throw line and fans booing as they consistently have […]

It’s been five years since, perhaps, the single worst trade in San Antonio Spurs history. Mind you, the organization once parted ways with local icon and Hall of Famer George Gervin. And over the years San Antonio has been on the wrong end of some lopsided deals. But sending Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors […]

There’s every reason to believe that San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson isn’t paying lip service when he describes his new role. “I roll with the punches and I adapt.” That sounds like a phrase an athlete trying to find his niche would say. “I feel like whatever is needed, that’s what I do.” Similarly, […]

Following a rookie year that provided one of the few bright spots during the 2022-23 San Antonio Spurs season, Malaki Branham, who closed with more than 20 points in three of those final seven games, figures to be a key piece for the Silver and Black going forward. ClutchPoints went one-on-one with the 20th overall […]

Only three times through the first 14 games of his promising San Antonio Spurs career has Victor Wembanyama failed to score at least 12 points, and two of those outings have come against the Los Angeles Clippers. Only once this season has Wemby recorded less than five rebounds. It just happened against the Clips. Ten […]

They’re forever linked. Partners for runs to the NBA Finals, including a team performance in 2014 that registers in the annals of basketball lore…to recent losing streaks at the start of seasons that come with tons of excitement. It’s impossible to tell Kawhi Leonard’s story without the San Antonio Spurs. And it’s quite possible that […]

In a season that has already seen a share of bad losses, the San Antonio Spurs just suffered what may have been their worst of the young 2023-24 campaign. Already without star Ja Morant, who is serving a 25-game NBA suspension for flashing a gun on social media during the offseason, the Memphis Grizzlies were […]

Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs found themselves on the wrong end of a 129-120 loss to the Sacramento Kings Friday night. It continues several trends for the Silver and Black. Their seventh straight setback also signified their third straight defeat in the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament. They’re now 0-2 when playing in their  […]

“He takes the worst shots ever.” Those are Hall-of- Famer Charles Barkley’s words describing San Antonio Spurs guard Devin Vassell. They came during Tuesday night’s broadcast of the Silver and Black’s blowout to Oklahoma City in a game that doubled as an NBA In-Season Tournament contest for both. Excluding a game at New York in […]

The San Antonio Spurs resume the NBA In-Season Tournament on Friday. Winless in two tournament games so far, they face the Sacramento Kings, the only team in Group C that’s played just one game in the inaugural competition. The Oklahoma City Thunder are the lone team in the group that’s played three tourney games. The Minnesota […]

Perhaps most telling about Victor Wembanyama’s first three weeks in the NBA is that the games that don’t qualify as good, don’t do so because they weren’t great. He scored 18 in a 115-114 October 31 win at Phoenix, put up 20 but didn’t get the ball down the stretch in an overtime loss to […]

“F**k this s**t.” It is safe to assume the phrase had never before been uttered on the record by any member of the San Antonio Spurs. It wasn’t said in frustration following Tuesday night’s 36 point loss in Oklahoma City. The expletive sandwich came over the weekend after practice when Jeremy Sochan responded to questions […]