San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama is expected to miss the remainder of the 2024-25 season after being diagnosed with a blood clot in his right shoulder, the team announced on Thursday.
Wembanyama has been diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis, a condition that was discovered earlier this week on his return from the All-Star break in San Francisco.
The condition, which occurs when a blood clot forms in the blood vessel, blocking blood flow, can be treated using blood thinners, which basically prevents a player from participating in a contact sport.
“[It’s] tough more than anything for all of us, knowing how much he means to our team,” veteran point guard Chris Paul said. “But more so knowing how much he means to the game and how much he loves to play.”
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) February 20, 2025
The former No. 1 pick made his first All-Star appearance last weekend, where he participated in the Skills Challenge and played for Chuck’s Global Stars in the All-Star Game.
He had six points and four rebounds as Team Chuck beat Kenny’s Young Stars in the semi-final before recording 11 points and three rebounds in a 41-25 defeat to Shaq’s OGs in the final.
The 21-year-old, the reigning Rookie of the Year, is currently averaging 24.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and a league-leading 3.8 blocks in 46 games this season.
As per the league’s 65-game minimum rule, this injury disrupts the Frenchman’s eligibility for end-of-season awards, including the All-NBA Teams selections and Defensive Player of the Year award, which he is seen as the frontrunner for, having tallied a total of 176 blocks at this point in the season.
San Antonio (23-29) sits in 12th place in the Western Conference, 3.5 games behind 10th-placed Golden State Warriors, who occupy the final play-in spot.
Losing Wembanyama is a huge blow for the Spurs, who are looking to end their playoff drought, having failed to make the postseason in the past five seasons.
