Victor Wembanyama’s Story Behind ‘5 Minutes of Total Breakdown’ Revealed

San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama opened up about the time he found out he has blood clots.

Victor Wembanyama’s Story Behind ‘5 Minutes of Total Breakdown’ Revealed

Victor Wembanyama (Image credits - Firstsportz)

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It is a no-brainer that Victor Wembanyama is an anomaly. The NBA world has never seen a player who is 7’4″, moves like a guard and can shoot from range. When the San Antonio Spurs drafted the French center as the number one pick in the 2023 NBA draft, they drafted a generational player they can build around for years to come. In just his third season in the league, Wembanyama is already a top-10 contender for league MVP.

The Spurs are just one of three teams to beat the defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the only team to do so twice so far this season. One-third into the 2025-26 campaign, the Spurs find themselves in second place in the Western Conference standings with a 22-7 record and are currently on a seven-match winning streak. The team are also coming off a second-place finish in the 2025 NBA Cup.

Before a calf injury which ruled him out for 12 games, Victor Wembanyama was very much in the conversation for the MVP award. The Spurs center is averaging 23.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 3.1 blocks at the moment and has shown no signs of slowing despite coming off the bench since his return from injury.

Wembanyama was dealt a huge blow last season, which could have derailed his NBA career. After just 46 games, he was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in his right shoulder in February 2025, a blood clot in his shoulder that ruled him out for the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign.

In an interview with Malika Andrews, the 21-year-old opened up about what he felt when he received the frightening news.

It’s gonna be one year soon since I learned. And it was five minutes of total breakdown. Praying and sadness, and feeling the fragility of life. Basketball wasn’t my priority all of a sudden. At a time like this when you have to take measures quickly, you have to make choices. It’s the best example that life is short, a career is short, and it can end just like this. There is no time to waste.

It was a huge revelation for the Frenchman as basketball had to take a backseat and focus more on his future. But it is good to see the star back this season and performing at an elite level.

Victor Wembanyama or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander?

Only a handful of players in the NBA can sit at the table with Wembanyama and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the moment. SGA is coming off a historic campaign last season in which he won the NBA Championship, Finals MVP, League-MVP and the scoring title. And this season, the Canadian international has picked up from where he left off as the Thunder sit at the top with a 26-4 record.

While SGA and the OKC are at the top right now, Wembanyama and the Spurs are not far behind and have shown the world that they can be legit contenders in the Western Conference. When asked which player should be picked between the two superstars to start a franchise, former American Footballer Ryan Clark did not hesitate with his answer.

Victor Wembanyama to start in any franchise at any point in the entire NBA. That sort of hype, that ability to bring fives away from the goal, that ability in defense in the way that Wemby does it. He is that generational talent. Wemby is different. If I’m building a team from scratch, Wemby’s my No. 1 pick in any era.

Nobody can take anything away from what SGA has achieved so far in a young NBA career, but Wembanyama is a talent that the league has never seen before and is already catching up with the best players.

Victor Wembanyama on minutes restriction

If there is one weakness that could be spotted in Wemby’s young career, it is being prone to injuries. NBA players of that size are prone to various types of injuries, and the center has had his fair share of struggles already.

Spurs have to manage Victor Wembanyama's health
Spurs have to manage Victor Wembanyama’s health (Image via NBA)

Since his return from a calf injury, Wemby has seen himself coming off the bench in his last six games and has been on a minutes restriction. The Spurs do not want to take any chances with their star player with still over 50 games to go in the regular season. Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson spoke about Wemby’s ongoing minutes restriction.

There’s nothing going to make us change on that. If this game goes into triple overtime, he will not be in the game. There’s no circumstances that will allow us to get outside of ourselves in that regard.

It appears that the Spurs fans will have to wait for a few more games before their superstar player is in top condition and ready to start in games.

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