Wembanyama was confident he should have scored 60 points! He explained the reason for his breakout performance against the Lakers: simply to prove himself.

On February 11th Beijing time, prior to facing the Lakers, Wembanyama made up his mind to guarantee that the Spurs wouldn’t ease up due to the opponent’s weakened roster. This kind of situation has happened a few times this season for the second-best team in the West.

Ultimately, the Spurs won 136-108 over the Lakers, while Wembanyama watched from the bench for the whole fourth quarter. Even though he scored an impressive 40 points in just 26 minutes, he still wished to stay on the court longer to improve his stats.

“I was also trying to get back on the floor, but honestly, the coach made the right call keeping me on the bench,” Wembanyama said. “We have to focus on the long term. But indeed, in games like this, you have to be ambitious. Every game you need that drive, always wanting more. Because no matter who’s on the court, there’s always someone trying to stop you from doing what you do best. So you have to stay aggressive and hungry.”

According to ESPN statistics, since the introduction of the 24-second shot clock era (1954-55 season), this marks only the fifth time a player has scored at least 40 points in 26 minutes or less. Wembanyama also grabbed 12 rebounds, making him the only player in NBA history besides Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing to record a 40+ point double-double in such limited time.

The Lakers were missing four regular starters in this game: center Deandre Ayton withdrew before the game due to knee soreness, and Doncic, LeBron James, and Reaves were already confirmed out. Smart also did not play.

Wembanyama took control from the opening tip, and before being subbed out for the first time with 4:01 left in the first quarter, he had made 8 of 9 shots and scored a staggering 25 points. This is the third highest single-quarter scoring in Spurs history, trailing only Hall of Famers George Gervin (33 points) and David Robinson (28 points).

“The reason for my breakout is simple: I wanted to prove myself and show the team that we can do it,” Wembanyama said, finishing the game with 13 of 20 shooting, 4 of 6 from three, and 10 of 12 free throws, tying his personal season-high in points. “I never worry about how we perform against strong teams, nor about myself. But history tells us that against such opponents, we must stay alert. So we can’t just talk about what to do; we have to actually do it.”

Standing 2.24 meters tall, Wembanyama scored 37 points by halftime, leading the Spurs to build a commanding 29-point lead.

“He was extremely aggressive,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. “This was the most intense start I’ve seen from him. Whether attacking the rim or confidently shooting threes, he completely stamped his mark on the game in the first half.”

Wembanyama scored only once in the third quarter, hitting a three-pointer before being substituted out.

At one point in the fourth quarter, he jokingly mimed running toward the scorer’s table as if ready to return to the game. Confidently, he stated that if he hadn’t sat out the fourth quarter and played regular minutes, he could have significantly surpassed his career-high of 50 points, possibly reaching the 60 points mentioned by reporters.

“Of course I could have scored 60, but I also know we have to preserve energy for tomorrow,” he said. After the game, the Spurs will fly to San Francisco to prepare for the back-to-back second game against the Golden State Warriors. “We have to put in another strong performance tomorrow. At the end of the day, it’s a team sport. The only stats that really matter are wins and losses.”