Victor Wembanyama Speaks on Personal Mindset After Spurs' Game 7 Win

The San Antonio Spurs have reached their first NBA Finals since 2014, and one of the key reasons for their success has been Victor Wembanyama. While he didn't win the NBA MVP award this season, the 7-foot-4 star has shown the mentality of a leader.

Wemby helped guide the Spurs to a 111-103 win in Game 7. The 22-year-old will enter the Finals during his first career playoff run. But the series wasn't easy for the Spurs. The defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, had home-court advantage in Game 7, creating a hostile environment for Wembanyama and San Antonio.

Following the win, the French star was asked by NBA legend Carmelo Anthony, who is currently working as an analyst for NBC's NBA broadcast, about having a tough mentality and winning the final game of the series on the road. "This game is so hard, this team is so good that you gotta use every single emotion you got in you in order to win," Wemby responded.

The two-time NBA All-Star was among the finalists for the MVP award. However, he lost the honor to Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and then had to watch the award ceremony during Game 1 of the NBA Western Conference Finals. Wemby continued by explaining how he used all those emotions to improve his performance on the court.

He said, "Like sometimes these emotions is passion, it's love for the game, sometimes it's anger, sometimes it might even be jealousy but I don't wanna weigh myself down with any of these energies." And clearly, Wembanyama has used the outside noise as motivation.

He scored a team-high 22 points in Game 7. Throughout the series, Wemby totaled 191 points, averaging 27.3 points per game. The Spurs star also dominated defensively, leading the series with 19 blocks and routinely altering OKC's offense around the rim. The consistency of his performance earned him the 2026 NBA Western Conference Finals MVP award.

Meanwhile, SGA recorded 35 points in the final game of the series. He finished with 181 points across the seven games while averaging 25.9 points per game. While he did manage to win back-to-back MVP awards, Wemby had the last laugh this season.

Now, as the Spurs head to the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks, he will hope to stay motivated and win his first NBA Championship.

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This story was originally published May 31, 2026 at 6:53 AM.