In his first playoff run, Victor Wembanyama has already entered his name into the record books.
The San Antonio Spurs star broke the NBA's official record for blocks in a playoff game in Game 1 of his team's series against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday.
Wembanyama swatted an Anthony Edwards finger-roll at the basket early in the fourth quarter for his 11th block, surpassing the previous record of 10, shared by Hakeem Olajuwon, Mark Eaton and Andrew Bynum.
It's worth noting that Wilt Chamberlain did have a 16-block game in the post-season, but it came before 1973-74, when blocks became an official NBA stat.
As for the 22-year-old Wembanyama, he'd finish with 12 blocks to go with 15 rebounds and five assists, helping to make up for a quiet scoring night, with just 11 points on 5-of-17 shooting. He went 2-of-8 for just five points in the second half of what ended up as a 104-102 loss in San Antonio.
Still, Wembanyama ended up as the third — and youngest — player in NBA history to record a playoff triple-double with blocks, joining Bynum (2012) and Olajuwon (1990). He was also the first to record at least 10 points, 15 rebounds and 10 blocks in a playoff game.
Wembanyama, in Year 3, has been stellar throughout his first NBA post-season experience, averaging 21.0 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steals and a league-leading 4.0 blocks entering Monday. He's done so on just 28.0 minutes per game and with a 65.6 effective field goal percentage.
The French phenom led the No. 2 seed Spurs into the playoffs on the heels of a standout campaign, averaging 25.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.0 steals and an NBA-leading 3.1 blocks. Wembanyama earned his second consecutive all-star nod as a result and, presumably, his first of many Defensive Player of the Year awards.
