Victor Wembanyama injury update: Spurs star enters concussion protocol, ruled out for rest of game vs. Blazers

Victor Wembanyama will not return for the remainder of Tuesday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers, the San Antonio Spurs announced. He went into concussion protocol after a scary fall in the first half.

Wembanyama went to drive on Portland guard Jrue Holiday and stayed on the ground to gather himself. He headed straight back to the locker room for more evaluation and was later ruled out for the remainder of the game.

“Victor will not return to this game,” NBC’s Zora Stephenson said of Wembanyama on the broadcast. “He’s going through concussion protocol. You all have shown the video of when he hit his head after that play with Jrue Holiday.”

The went into halftime tied 57-57 with the Trail Blazers in the second game of their first-round series. San Antonio won the first game, 111-98, earlier this week behind 35 points from Wembanyama.

Wembanyama is coming off a huge 2025-26 regular season in San Antonio to lead the Spurs to the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. He averaged 25.0 points to go with 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 3.1 blocks and a steal per game. He also became the first player in NBA history to unanimously win Defensive Player of the Year.

After winning the award, though, Wembanyama – much like he does opposing teams’ shots during games – deflected the individual praise. Instead, he pointed out the importance of the entire team to bringing home the honor since he can thrive in the system.

“We often overlook the team aspect,” Wembanyama said, via ESPN’s Michael C. Wright. “I’m sitting here. I happen to be the guy who’s put in the spotlight, but I am part of a system, and I couldn’t get this award, and I couldn’t do what I do if it wasn’t for my teammates … and my coaching staff.”

However, Spurs guard Stephon Castle said Wembanyama transcends the idea of Defensive Player of the Year being a “team” honor. That speaks to just how much of a difference the former No. 1 pick makes just on his own.

“Vic’s a lot different than a typical defender,” Castle said. “Most of the time when somebody wins Defensive Player of the Year, it’s like more team defense and obviously, you have to be a great defender as well. But I feel like for Vic, he could’ve won it on any team in the league.”

The Spurs dominated the Western Conference this year, finishing with a 62-20 overall record to secure the 1-seed. San Antonio finished 10 games ahead of the Houston Rockets for first place in the standings.