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Timberwolves coach Chris Finch: 'At least four' of Victor Wembanyama's 12 blocks were goaltending
TL;DR
Victor Wembanyama set an NBA playoff record with 12 blocks, but Timberwolves coach Chris Finch claimed at least four were goaltending. The Spurs lost to the Timberwolves 104-102 in Game 1 of their playoff series.
Key points
- Victor Wembanyama set an NBA playoff record with 12 blocks.
- Timberwolves coach Chris Finch claimed four blocks were goaltending.
- The Spurs lost to the Timberwolves 104-102.
- Wembanyama is the first unanimous Defensive Player of the Year in NBA history.
Victor WembanyamaSan Antonio SpursMinnesota TimberwolvesNBA
Imagn Images
Victor Wembanyama, the first unanimous Defensive Player of the Year in NBA history, made more history on Monday when he recorded 12 blocks to set the league's all-time single-game playoff record. Despite his defensive efforts, the San Antonio Spurs lost, 104-102, to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series.
And according to Timberwolves coach Chris Finch, the margin would have been bigger if the officials hadn't missed multiple goaltending calls on Wembanyama.
"He had a lot of blocks, he had a couple of uncalled goaltendings, too. Those are valuable points we'd like to have back," Finch said postgame.
On Tuesday afternoon, Finch met with the media again and doubled down.
"When we looked at them, at least four of them were goaltending. Maybe even a fifth. To me, it's a little alarming that none of them were called," Finch said. "Here's a generational shot-blocker who's 7-foot-6 [actually 7-4] who goes after everything, and there's no heightened awareness that these blocks could be goaltends. The third possession of the game was a goaltend, and it was a clean, obvious one. Let's just say there were four, that's eight points. Do you know the value of eight points in an NBA game? It's massive. That's also 33% of his blocks were goaltending, uncalled. If I were to give you a 33% raise, you'd like that, right? That's a huge number."
Timberwolves center and fellow Frenchman Rudy Gobert agreed. "If you look at them, there are probably three or four [goaltends]," Gobert said. "I wish I had that type of treatment too."
Q&A
How many blocks did Victor Wembanyama record in the playoff game?
Victor Wembanyama recorded 12 blocks in the playoff game.
What did Timberwolves coach Chris Finch say about Wembanyama's blocks?
Chris Finch stated that at least four of Wembanyama's blocks were actually goaltending calls that were missed by officials.
What was the final score of the Timberwolves vs. Spurs playoff game?
The final score was Timberwolves 104, Spurs 102.
What record did Victor Wembanyama set during the playoff game?
Wembanyama set the NBA's all-time single-game playoff record for blocks with 12.
