San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama’s left calf strain is going to sideline him for a few weeks, ESPN reported Monday.
The franchise center underwent an MRI and was inactive Sunday as his short-handed Spurs beat the visiting Sacramento Kings 123-110 to improve to 9-4.
The Spurs plan to act cautiously and will reevaluate his condition in two to three weeks, according to ESPN.
“We’ve seen around this league recently (that) the calf-tightness thing is not something you want to take lightly,” Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson said Sunday. “Don’t want to push it there.”
Wembanyama averaged 26.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and a league-high 3.6 blocks in 34.7 minutes over San Antonio’s first 12 games of the season. He played 38 minutes and was on the court to finish the Spurs’ 109-108 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Friday in NBA Cup action.
The 7-foot-3 Frenchman played 71 games in his 2023-24 Rookie of the Year campaign and was limited to 46 games last season due to deep vein thrombosis in his right shoulder.
Journeyman center Luke Kornet replaced Wembanyama in the starting lineup Sunday. He scored 13 points on 5-of-5 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds.
The Spurs host the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday and Atlanta Hawks on Thursday, then embark on a four-game road trip that includes NBA Cup matchups with the Portland Trail Blazers and Denver Nuggets.