SAN ANTONIO — On Wednesday the Bulls led the Spurs by as many as 22 points, and the Spurs won 124-119 anyway. Victor Wembanyama finished with 32 points in 32 minutes, and San Antonio has now won 10 straight games.
That run, and a 10-2 record, greets the Warriors on Friday. Golden State is 8-4 this season. It lost 115-108 at Houston on Wednesday, a game in which the Rockets led by as many as 18 points and the Warriors never led. Yaxel Lendeborg had 25 points and 10 rebounds in that loss. He scored 13 points in the second quarter.
Wembanyama's Game Score has come in above the usual line in each of the last 3 games played. He is averaging 30.7 points this season and 36.6 over the last 5. He scored 41 against the Warriors on Apr 1, and the Spurs won that meeting 127-113. Since 2019-20, the Spurs are 10-13 against the Warriors in the regular season.
The contrast in styles shows in last season's scouting numbers. The Warriors took 49.7% of their shots from three, the highest of 30 teams. They took 27.5% of their shots at the rim, the 6th-lowest of 30 teams. On the other end, opponents shot 62.1% at the rim against the Spurs, the 2nd-lowest of 30 teams, and the Spurs rebounded 72.4% of their opponents' missed shots, the highest of 30 teams.