Hector Ledesma Articles - Page 5

In a match-up of the best big man in the NBA today vs. the player who’ll most likely hold that title soon – and hold it for a while – Victor Wembanyama beat Nikola Jokic in a 113-110 San Antonio Spurs victory vs. the Denver Nuggets. The NBA’s reigning Most Valuable Player scored 41 points, […]

Following one of the San Antonio Spurs’ best performances of the season in their last game of the year, several players had a chance to reflect on 2024. For Victor Wembanyama, it’s about maintaining his “craziness”. The most decorated player on the Silver and Black’s roster, Chris Paul, is grateful. Meanwhile, in remembering the year […]

In what’s been a rookie season that’s seen moments of brilliance for the San Antonio Spurs, Stephon Castle was coming off what may have been his worst stretch as a pro. It was easily his most pedestrian stint since his first week in the NBA. The national champion with the UConn Huskies headed into a […]

In blitzing the Los Angeles Clippers with 122 points while holding them to just 86, Mitch Johnson, Chris Paul and the San Antonio Spurs closed out 2024 with one of their most complete performances of the season. It was easily their largest margin of victory and caught some off guard, not only because LA is […]

With 27 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks in a 122-86 New Year’s Eve route of the Los Angeles Clippers, Victor Wembanyama capped quite a December for the San Antonio Spurs. Through 12 games in the month, Wemby averaged 28.5 points, 10 rebounds, 4.5 blocks and 4.8 assists per game while shooting 48.8% […]

When Chris Paul joined the San Antonio Spurs over the summer he knew Gregg Popovich and his young teammates would rely on his experience. Two months into his first regular season in the Alamo City, Paul’s mentorship has proven key for another Spurs coach. That’s because Mitch Johnson is 38 years old, while Paul is 39. […]

Several Oddsmakers named him the preseason favorite to win Rookie of the Year. Though Stephon Castle has hit the toughest stretch of what’s been a good, sometimes very good, rookie season for the San Antonio Spurs, the 20-year-old is still averaging 10.9 points and 3.6 assists in 25.1 minutes per game. Through an impressive start […]

The San Antonio Spurs closed a four-game road trip the way they started it — with a loss to a playoff contender that’s been playing better as of late following a slow start. A 112-110 setback to the Minnesota Timberwolves came a little less than a week after the Spurs fell to the Philadelphia 76ers. […]

San Antonio Spurs forward Julian Champagnie noticed an extremely tall presence in the back of the room during his most recent post-game press conference. “Big man in the back,” Champagnie said to the individual who had just entered the room. “Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs,” the for-the-moment reporter identified himself as before asking a question […]

Victor Wembanyama isn’t putting much stock into his most recent game – a Christmas Day performance at the New York Knicks that made everyone else take note. Despite his 42 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks, and four assists, the 20-year-old phenom focused instead on what the San Antonio Spurs didn’t do. “We’re not ready yet,” […]

Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs will help jump-start the NBA Christmas Day action with an 11:00 start (CT) vs. the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Each player who wears the Silver and Black has his reason(s), but each readily admits excitement about suiting up on one of the calendar’s marquee dates. […]

Following his first NBA Player of the Week honor, Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs suffered a tough loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, 111-106. The Silver and Black held a one point lead and had the ball with a minute left in the game when they threw it away near mid court. It was […]

In what’s becoming old hat for y0ung Victor Wembanyama, the San Antonio Spurs superstar continues to establish statistical firsts. In scoring 30 points and blocking 10 shots in a recent win vs. the Portland Trail Blazers, the 7-foot-5 center became the youngest player to register those numbers in a game. That same night, he became […]

It’s hard to miss San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan on the court. The 2022 ninth-overall draft pick’s hair is colored bright green. This is the time of the year that lends itself to a certain fabled Christmas-themed character. “Grinch kind of vibes,” the 21-year-old said. “I think I’m going to keep it like this.” […]

Victor Wembanyama scored 42 points, blocked four shots, grabbed six rebounds and dished out five assists to lead the San Antonio Spurs past the Atlanta Hawks 133-126 in overtime on Thursday. The reigning Rookie of the Year accounted for his team’s first eight points of the extra period after scoring 10 in a back-and-forth fourth […]

Though Keldon Johnson was out for ten days with a left calf strain, he missed just two games in that time frame. Fortunately for Johnson, the San Antonio Spurs schedule featured only a pair of contests during that span. It’s especially comforting for Johnson considering his time out came as a result of a dreaded […]

San Antonio Spurs guard Tre Jones, who started for most of last season, is expected to return for the Spurs’ next game against the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night. Once Jones returns to the Spurs lineup, it’ll mark just the ninth game he’ll play this season. “It’s been tough to be out this much. I’ve […]

A day after San Antonio Spurs legendary coach Gregg Popovich released a statement for the first time since suffering a mild stroke in early November, two of his players, Jeremy Sochan and Stephon Castle, reacted accordingly. Sochan’s response was, well, Sochan-like, complete with curse words, while Castle’s answer featured a more standard tone – the […]

Less than a week after – and in their first outing since – Victor Wembanyama hit a last-minute three-pointer to win a game, the San Antonio Spurs turned to their generational talent late in Friday’s game at the Portland Trail Blazers. Again, he delivered. “I came to the bench when it was a tied game […]

Down 17 points with 8:29 remaining in the game and without veteran point guard Chris Paul and standout rookie Stephon Castle, the San Antonio Spurs were dead in the water against the Portland Trail Blazers. That is, to everyone except Victor Wembanyama, Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, and the rest of the shorthanded Silver and Black. […]

Victor Wembanyama is in the midst of another first. Unlike just about every other one the San Antonio Spurs center has experienced though, this is one he’d rather do without. “It’s something different than I’ve experienced before in my career,” Wembanyama said following the Silver and Black’s most recent game. The NBA’s first ever Western […]

With just under 0:40 remaining in the San Antonio Spurs’ most recent game, the team was down by two to the New Orleans Pelicans. As they came up the court, Victor Wembanyama trailed the ball-handling Chris Paul. In a surprise to no one, the future Hall-of-Fame point guard flipped the ball back to his uniquely […]

With his third assist on Sunday evening, Chris Paul passed Jason Kidd for second in NBA career assists. It came on a pass to Victor Wembanyama for a three-pointer in the second quarter of a 121-116 San Antonio Spurs victory vs. the New Orleans Pelicans. Spurs just honored Chris Paul for climbing to #2 on […]

While there’s no doubt that Victor Wembanyama is the San Antonio Spurs’ best player, it’s perhaps just slightly less obvious that Devin Vassell ranks as their second-best. Chris Paul, who’s got the age advantage over both, has enjoyed a better career than either, and rookie Stephon Castle may have a bigger upside than Vassell. Still, […]

The San Antonio Spurs haven’t been strangers to losing over the last couple of years. But, despite back-to-back 60-loss seasons, the newly acquired Chris Paul says this team can’t get comfortable with such a reality. “You don’t want to get used to this losing stuff.” The 39-year-old point guard preceded that by spelling out a […]

Just two nights after Mitch Johnson praised the San Antonio Spurs defense for the reason they stayed in a game at the Phoenix Suns, the acting head coach found no shortage of ways to criticize his team’s efforts – sans Victor Wembanyama – on that side of the floor in a loss to the Chicago […]

In missing a chance to win their group in the Emirates NBA Cup and advance to what essentially serves as the playoffs of the league’s in-season tournament, the San Antonio Spurs hit just eight of the 44 three-pointers they took in shooting 35% overall vs. the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. However, because the Silver and […]

In what may have been the San Antonio Spurs biggest game in several years, the proud franchise came up short of winning its group in the NBA Cup. Afterward, Chris Paul, who’s been in many a big game over his 20 NBA seasons, sounded like a player who realized what had just eluded his new […]

A year after losing every one of their games in the NBA Cup, the San Antonio Spurs are on the verge of winning their group. Beat the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday and the Silver and Black will claim the West’s Group B. It’s that simple. They can still advance to the knockout stage of the […]

San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan is listed as “probable” on the team’s injury report released on the eve of their match-up vs. the Phoenix Suns, via Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News. It’s notable considering Sochan hasn’t played since November 4 and could boost a Spurs that, led by Victor Wembanyama, has been […]

In yet another sign that the San Antonio Spurs are vastly improving, they’re now winning games in which they didn’t play well. Normally the type of trait reserved for playoff squads, if not title contenders. Still, acting head coach Mitch Johnson didn’t like how his team started in Sunday’s victory vs. the Sacramento Kings. San […]

Victor Wembanyama scored 34 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, and dished out 11 assists in the San Antonio Spurs 127-125 victory at the Sacramento Kings, which serves as the third triple-double of his young career. It also marks a fifth win in the last six games for the Silver and Black, who now stand at 11-9. […]

Had you told San Antonio Spurs management when they were looking to trade for Harrison Barnes this summer that he’d win Western Conference Player of the Week to cap the first month of the season, they might not have believed you. Make no mistake, they’d take it and they obviously thought he’d contribute, but their […]

When Victor Wembanyama says your maturity impresses him, it’s time to take a bow. San Antonio Spurs rookie Stephon Castle might be that special. One thing’s for certain right now. His play down the stretch of close games for the Silver and Black has won has been special. “I’ve said many times, he’s playing like […]

The San Antonio Spurs famously – perhaps infamously – cautious approach to player injuries has carried over to superstar Victor Wembanyama. For the better part of a Rookie of the Year season, the franchise capped the number of minutes he’d play per game. Oftentimes, coach Gregg Popovich didn’t allow Wemby to suit up on the […]

Victor Wembanyama scored nearly half of his game-high 25 points in the fourth quarter as the San Antonio Spurs erased a 17-point late third-quarter deficit to beat Stephen Curry and a Golden State Warriors team that sits atop the Western Conference 104-94. In his first game back after missing three straight with a knee contusion, the […]

As the San Antonio Spurs forge forward without Hall-of-Famer Gregg Popovich, they do so with his presence very much in mind. Veteran forward Harrison Barnes, acquired this summer via trade, hasn’t played many games for the winningest coach in NBA history. That doesn’t mean the magnitude of not having one of the greatest of all-time […]

Even without Victor Wembanyama on the court, the San Antonio Spurs know where they want the ball to start the crucial possessions of a close game. In Chris Paul’s hands. On Tuesday as the Oklahoma City Thunder mounted a fourth quarter rally from 20 point deficit, the Silver and Black managed to keep one of […]

A home game vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder represented Mitch Johnson’s 10th game as the San Antonio Spurs acting head coach. Some of these contests have featured fantastic individual performances, like Victor Wembanyama’s 50-point outburst, and blowouts against good teams, like a 20-point showing against the Sacramento Kings. Perhaps though, none were as satisfying as […]