Victor Wembanyama is in danger of missing his second game of the postseason after the Spurs big man hit Naz Reid with an elbow during the second quarter of the Timberwolves Game 4 win over San Antonio on Sunday.
Wembanyama came down with an offensive rebound over Reid and didn't appreciate the contact so he swung his right arm and struck Reid in the chin. After review the foul was upgraded to a flagrant 2 and he was ejected.
Now the question becomes: will Wembanyama be suspended for Game 5, or maybe even longer? There's no question Wembanyama swung his elbow with intent here, but the Frenchman does not have the history of dirty plays that someone like Draymond Green or Metta World Peace had when they were suspended in the past.
World Peace was suspended seven games when he hit James Harden with a similar elbow during the final week of the '11-'12 season. He missed the Lakers' final game of the regular season and the first six games of the playoffs.
Metta World Peace on elbowing James Harden in '12 Playoffs: "It wasn’t meant for James," he tells @BallySports.
"I didn’t even know who was behind me. I just felt someone push me; I didn’t know who it was.
"It was very unfortunate." pic.twitter.com/L9Y2Y2fHrv
— 👑 Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson (@ScoopB) September 27, 2021
This is the play most people are pointing to in the wake of the Wembanyama elbow as proof that it should warrant a suspension. But again, the big difference is that World Peace, back when he was still Ron Artest, had already been suspended a full season for his role in the Malice at the Palace and had also been suspended for a game for elbowing Manu Ginobili during the '06 playoffs. That's just to name two things that were on his permanent record before James Harden had even been drafted.
Still, this was a pretty violent act by Wembanyama and the league will be completely justified to take a closer look. The league may take into consideration the fact that Jaden McDaniels was holding Wembanyama's other arm with two hands when he took his frustration out on Reid, as well as a number of other extracurricular activities that Spurs fans are pointing out online this morning.
Naz Reid, Victor Wembanyama, Jaden McDaniels
Victor Wembanyama about to elbow Naz Reid while Jaden McDaniels holds his other arm. | NBC
The league has some leeway here because there was no automatic suspension triggered, as one was when Draymond Green ended up getting suspended for Game 5 of the '16 NBA Finals. Wembanyama still needs two more flagrant points for that to happen so whenever he plays again expect the Timberwolves to go back to trying to frustrate him to the point of retaliation.
It seems unlikely that the league will try to prove a point with Wembanyama who is well on his way to being the face of the league. There's a crucial Game 5 with the series tied 2-2 on Tuesday night on NBC and Peacock. No one outside Minnesota wants to see the Spurs have to play that game without Wemby the way they were without him in Game 3 of a tied series during the first round against the Trail Blazers when he was held out because of the concussion protocol.
After Tuesday the series will return to Minnesota where one of the teams will have a chance to clinch. Game 7, if necessary, will be played in San Antonio on Sunday.
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