Is Victor Wembanyama built for this? Spurs superstar faces biggest moment of his career in Game 6 vs. Thunder

Believing something and proving it aren't always the same thing. Victor Wembanyama is learning that in real time. 

In December, after the Spurs beat the Thunder in the NBA Cup semifinals, Wembanyama said he felt lucky to play for San Antonio. He credited his teammates and noted that they won the game against stiff competition. Then he went further.  

"Some people are built for this moment and some aren't," Wembanyama said. "We definitely are, and it shows." 

Fast forward five months and the stakes are considerably higher these days. Wembanyama and the Spurs are down 3-2 to the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, with a win-or-go-home Game 6 in San Antonio looming on Thursday night. The moment could not be bigger, but despite his unflinching confidence, it remains to be seen whether Wemby and his teammates are built for it. 

They definitely weren't in a pivotal Game 5 loss at Oklahoma City on Tuesday. Wembanyama was particularly poor by his standards. He went just 4 of 15 from the floor -- his worst shooting performance of the playoffs -- missed all five of his 3-point attempts and finished with 20 points, six rebounds and one lonely assist. That he made all 12 of his free throws was something, as were his three blocks and two steals, but all that ultimately did little to alter the only numbers that mattered: the final score. 

Wembanyama was upset enough about that outcome that he declined to speak to the media after the game and walked right past reporters before hopping on the team bus and disappearing into the night. In his absence, Stephon Castle was asked about Wemby's lackluster evening. Castle covered for his teammate, pointing out that the Thunder "[sent] so many bodies toward him, it's hard, at times." Which was true, but that's how it goes when you're an MVP finalist, a first-team All-NBA selection and the first unanimous Defensive Player of the Year in NBA history. Regardless of the defensive coverages, Wembanyama simply wasn't good enough when the Spurs desperately needed him to be better. 

"He's our best player," Castle conceded, "so yeah, we need him to be aggressive." 

They do, which is at least a little concerning, considering he wasn't really in Game 5. Not in any meaningful way that might have altered the outcome. Wembanyama had just eight points in the paint and too often settled for jump shots. It was an approach reminiscent of Game 3 when he didn't have his first points in the paint until late in the third quarter. San Antonio lost that game, too. Contrast that with how he played in Game 4. He got into the paint early and often while his teammates threw him lobs almost from the opening jump en route to Wembanyama posting a game-high 33 points in 31 minutes on 11-for-22 shooting. The Spurs won that game easily. It's not that Wembanyama can't or shouldn't shoot 3s, it's that his offense is more consistent and has a greater impact when he starts by being aggressive inside. Apologies for stating the obvious, but the man is 7-foot-4 and can do things around the rim that no one else in this series or on earth can match. 

This makes his shot diet in critical moments bewildering at times. Late in Game 5, before it was fully out of reach, Wembanyama had the ball around the elbow. Cason Wallace and Isaiah Hartenstein harassed him, so Wembanyama dribbled back beyond the 3-point line before he opted to drive and throw up a messy floater that missed badly off the backboard. 

It was ugly offense with no flow or rhythm, and it was only one of several moments from the game that Wembanyama would probably like to have back. Chet Holmgren -- whom Wembanyama has dominated virtually every time the two have played each other as professionals -- dunked on him in the third quarter. Twice. The first one was disallowed because of a shot clock violation, but Wembanyama was hardly happy that either play occurred. His displeasure was so obvious that the TV broadcast called it out after he appeared to purposefully bump into Holmgren after a timeout was called. 

That wasn't the only time where his frustration seemingly led to physicality. At the end of Game 5, when both coaches emptied their benches, Wembanyama whispered something to both Mason Plumlee and Bismack Biyombo as they checked into the game. We don't know what was said, but not long thereafter, both Plumlee and Biyombo were whistled for hard fouls on Jared McCain. (Plumlee's was upgraded to a Flagrant 1 the next day after league review.)

When McCain was asked about it, he called it "crazy" and said he didn't expect it. 

"We were at the free-throw line," McCain said, "and I was like, 'Why'd you do that, man?' And he was like 'I got another one for you, too.'"

In typical McCain fashion, he smiled and laughed it off, saying "it's all competition" and "you gotta respect it." Whether Wembanyama ordered the Code Red or it was all just a coincidence hardly matters. It was pretty obvious to everyone that none of the Spurs were pleased with how they played, least of all Wembanyama. 

Before Game 5 Keldon Johnson gave Wemby a pep talk, and during the proceedings Wembanyama tried to rally the troops in the huddle during a timeout. None of it worked. All the talking failed. So did the shoulder bumping and the late-game hard fouls by seldom-used bench players. If the Spurs want to extend their season rather than begin their summer vacation, they'll all have to be markedly better in Game 6 -- including and especially Wembanyama. It's the biggest moment of his career, and we're about to find out if he's built for it.