In beating the Sacramento Kings 132-104, the San Antonio Spurs captured their first 51st win of the season. Building on their first 50-win season in almost a decade is an accomplishment Victor Wembanyama says is more than a year in the making.
“I look back and I think, ‘I hope we can be this locked in for all the off-seasons to come,' because it was a really high-level preparation mentally, physically for everybody; the amount of film we did. And this is the reason we were so ready for the season. So, that's what I think when I look back.”
San Antonio entered the year off a 34-48 campaign that followed a 22-60 mark in Wemby's rookie season. Though that provides the context for what's proven a very impressive 2025-2026, it reaches minimal expectation for the generational talent.
“One thing you can say is taking each step at a time and validating the checking of boxes. My goal was never to make the play-in or win the play-in. It was to get into the playoffs with no question and that would've made a successful season at the time,” the Spurs' leading scorer said following a victory the night before against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Just 22 years old, Wembanyama showcases wisdom beyond his years. It's been that way since he entered the NBA at the age of 19. And it's a gift he drove home following the win in LA.
“It's hard to always look at a season as a whole. We can look at the season as our worst stretch at the end of 2025 or our best stretch in the month of February pretty much right now.”
Following a stint in which they won 11 of 12 games, including three against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Spurs lost back-to-back home games to the Utah Jazz and a then struggling Cleveland Cavaliers team. A week later, they lost consecutive games again, this time to the Portland Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzles, who sit 10th and 11th in the Western Conference Standings through mid-March.
Conversely, San Antonio didn't lose in February and recently fell in only one game on a home stand full of postseason contenders, including some of the league's best. And that loss came without Wembanyama to the Denver Nuggets.
Spurs resume storied history of 50+ wins
Before this season, the last time the Silver and Black hit 50 wins was 2016-17 when they won 61 and reached the Western Conference Finals. That run, which ended in a 4-1 series loss to the eventual champion Golden State Warriors after Kawhi Leonard re-aggravated an ankle injury, marked the franchise's 20th straight season of 50+ (or equivalent – 37 in strike shortened '99) wins.
These Spurs are 51-18 following a 132-104 blowout in Sacramento.
“It's very much possible that these last 14 games are satisfying. Or not. This is why we've got to take each step at a time,” Wembanyama contonued following the aforementioned triumph over the Clippers.
“Even though the season will be somewhat successful when you look as a whole, we've still got (13) games.”
Truth is, Wembanyama and the Spurs appear set to play well more than the 13 games that remain in the regular season.
