May 27 - San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama has been warned by the NBA for violating media access rules by not speaking to reporters after Game 5, the league told ESPN on Wednesday.
The Spurs lost 127-114 to the host Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night and now trail 3-2 in the best-of-seven Western Conference finals. A team spokesman said after the game that Wembanyama would not be available to media.
The 22-year-old center scored 20 points in 38 minutes on 4-of-15 shooting from the field -- including 0-for-5 from 3-point range -- and 12 of 12 from the free-throw line. He collected just one rebound in the first half and totaled six as well as two steals and three blocks.
The league's history of fining players from not being available to media after playoff games includes Jimmy Butler III (then of the Miami Heat) and Dillon Brooks (then of the Memphis Grizzlies), who were fined $25,000 each in 2023, per ESPN.
Wembanyama, an All-Star the past two seasons, won the Magic Johnson Award this season from the Professional Basketball Writers Association. The annual honor, created in 2001, is for the NBA player who best combines excellence on the court with cooperation and dignity in dealing with the media and public.
He leads the Spurs in scoring average (22.9 points per game), rebounds (11.1) and blocks (3.7) in 15 playoff games. He averaged 25.0 points, rebounds and a league-best 3.1 blocks in 64 regular-season contests.
The first overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft, Wembanyama was the 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year. He was the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, the lone unanimous choice for All-Defensive first team as well as first-team All-NBA this season. He was an All-Star the past two seasons.
--Field Level Media