The Lakers looked sharp in their 119-101 victory over the Spurs, showing one of their most well-rounded performances of the season. The energy was high, fueled by a revamped starting lineup and the drive to get back to their winning ways. They took control defensively, using their physicality to disrupt the Spurs and keep Victor Wembanyama out of the paint. This aggressive approach set the tone, making it nearly impossible for Wembanyama to establish a rhythm inside. You could see the frustration building. But, what’s even worse is that Anthony Davis has revealed a secret to the world: the French phenom’s scoring strategy.

While talking to the media post-match, Davis disclosed their strategy to contain the 7-foot-4 Frenchman. “It’s very simple um just communicating, our courage, the red keep the ball in front obviously. Wemby can shoot the basketball so we want to switch and make sure that you know he’s not getting open threes. His last two games, he had 13-14 or something like that” said Davis referring to the young Frenchman’s insane three-point shots attempts per game.

He further broke down their counter tactics saying, “You know we want to make sure that we try to limit those attempts and if he did shoot, they’re highly contested, which most of them were. So it was a good gameplan and I think we executed it to the T.” 

This worked very well for the Lakers as Wembanyama could score only 2 out of his 9 attempts from beyond the arc. Victor Wembanyama finished the game with 20 points and 10 rebounds, but the Spurs still saw their four-game winning streak snapped. The changes made by coach Redick in the Lakers’ playing strategy paid off well it seems.

Moving rookie Dalton Knecht into the starting five and sending Cam Reddish to the bench made the new unit click. They went on to dominate each quarter and controlled the game from start to finish.

An end to Victor Wembanyama’s crazy shooting form?

Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs have been on fire lately, enjoying their best stretch of basketball since Wemby arrived. Sorry had been on fire. With four straight wins under their belt, the team’s momentum is undeniable. What is this, the 2022 Spurs? But what’s even more captivating is Wemby’s personal performance.

Over his last six games, until he faced the Lakers, he was lighting it up from deep, averaging 12.8 three-point attempts per game and hitting an impressive 44% of them. Those were the kinds of numbers that make even seasoned sharpshooters jealous.

That said, it’s worth keeping expectations in check. And the Lakers did just that. This shooting spree was based on limited sample size, and it was tough to imagine Wemby maintaining this scorching pace from beyond the arc all season.

Looking at his season-long stats, Wembanyama is making 34.5% of his threes, ranking 18th in the league, just a spot behind Damian Lillard. What really stands out, though, is his shot distribution. Wemby has taken more three-pointers (139) than two-pointers (134) this season—a surprising shift considering that last year, nearly 67% of his attempts were inside the arc.

Wemby’s game will likely continue to evolve to focus on the most efficient spots on the court—knocking down threes or dominating at the rim. What do you think? Will he go back to dominating the rim again or make another effort to shift to threes?