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Victor Wembanyama Makes Surprise Appearance After Crushing Injury

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Sean Deveney | Last updated May 20, 2025 2:08 PM ET

When Victor Wembanyama was diagnosed in March with deep-vein thrombosis caused by a blood clot in his shoulder, it came at a particularly crushing time for the second-year Spurs star. He was averaging 24.3 points and 11.0 rebounds, but also putting up a league-best 3.8 blocks in addition to 1.1 steals.

At the time, Wembanyama was the front-runner to win the league's Defensive Player of the Year award, which not only comes with considerable prestige, but a bump in his max-contract bracket when it comes time to earn an extension from the Spurs. A minimum of 65 games is required to win though, though, and with only 46 games to his credit, Wembanyama missed out on the award.

Speaking to reporters last month, Wembanyama was cagey about addressing the condition or even whether he'd had surgery to fix it.

"There's many more things than surgery when you go to the hospital for a blood clot," Wembanyama said. "We're taking our time and I'm neither late or early [in recovery], but it's a process and there are definitely steps for me to reach. At the time, I definitely didn't know [the extent of the condition]. But looking back I did feel a certain way. I wasn't in the best shape ever at the All-Star Game. By no means was it easy to learn and process.

"I think I did and I'm still doing the best we can do, taking care of my body and trusting the incredible work of the medical staff. I'm sure it's something I'm going to use to grow and be better."

While both Wembanyama and the Spurs have been somewhat cryptic on the injury and his timeline for recovery, the team has been steady in saying the big man is expected back on the floor to start next season.

And there was good news on that front this week, as pictures emerged of Wembanyama working out with his countryman, French prospect Maxime Raynaud, who played at Stanford.

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While Wembanyama is reported to have been cleared for weight-lifting, he had not been cleared for on-floor contact. It's hard to say whether there was contact in his workout with Raynaud, but at the very least, Wembanyama is clearly comfortable being back on the floor.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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