Go Unlimited with Magzter GOLD
Get unlimited access to 10,000+ magazines, newspapers and Premium stories for just
Try GOLD - Free
Wembanyama puts on a 'top-five' show for Paris crowd
The Straits Times
|January 25, 2025
Victor Wembanyama said he played one of the best five games of his young career after delighting his home crowd in Paris on Jan 23 by scoring 30 points to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 140-110 rout of the Indiana Pacers.
-
The 21-year-old centre took control of the game in a third-quarter performance when the Spurs roared into a 23-point lead.
Wembanyama was playing in the French league 11/2 years ago before his selection as the No. 1 pick in the 2023 National Basketball Association (NBA) draft set him on the path to global stardom.
Returning to France with the Spurs for the first time, the 2.21m player's first block of the game brought loud cheers from a crowd of nearly 16,000 at the sold-out Bercy Arena, where he helped France claim a silver at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
There was an even bigger roar when he scored his first points four minutes and 30 seconds into the game on the way to 15 first-half points.
"That was one of the matches that was closest to my heart," Wembanyama said. "And in terms of pure performance, it's in the top five. It means everything. It's crazy to have the public like that.
This story is from the January 25, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM The Straits Times
The Straits Times
UPS cuts 48,000 jobs on fewer Amazon deliveries
NEW YORK - United Parcel Service (UPS) is cutting some 48,000 jobs as part of a major reorganisation connected to a planned reduction in delivery services for Amazon packages, company officials said on Oct 28.
1 min
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
Child protection • Consider renaming agency to reinforce its enforcement role
A nation searches its soul over the brutal abuse and killing of four-year-old Megan Khung.
1 min
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
S'pore investing in field of embodied Al
Of the two cohorts supported so far, six startups are based in Singapore, reflecting how local innovators are helping to shape the region's low-carbon transition, said DPM Gan.
2 mins
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
KL's ban on raw rare earths exports remains despite US deal: Minister
KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia will maintain a ban on the export of raw rare earths to protect its domestic resources, despite signing a critical minerals deal with the US this week, the investment, trade and industry minister said on Oct 29.
1 min
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
At least 132 killed in Brazil police raids in Rio ahead of COP30
Eighty-one arrested in operation described by state govt as largest to target major gang
2 mins
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
Enlivening S’pore’s north, helping shops digitalise among ideas being studied by RTS Link task force
Rejuvenating neighbourhoods in Singapore’s north and supporting businesses through promotions and digitalisation are some plans being explored by a task force helping Singaporeans and local businesses seize opportunities from the upcoming Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link.
3 mins
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
Nasa tests ‘quiet’ supersonic jet in quest for faster passenger air travel
- Nasa’s X-59 Quesst supersonic-but-quiet jet soared over the Southern California desert on Oct 28 in the first test flight of an experimental aircraft designed to break the sound barrier with little noise, paving the way for faster commercial air travel.
2 mins
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
Repetitive dullness snuffs out A House Of Dynamite
A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE (M18) 115 minutes, available on Netflix ★★☆☆☆ The story: A missile, possibly armed with a nuclear payload, launches from Asia and is headed towards the United States. Impact is expected in minutes. In the White House situation room, Captain Walker (Rebecca Ferguson) tries to work out the origins of the launch and the reasons for it. At the same time, at a military command centre in Nebraska, General Brady (Tracy Letts) weighs his options. Walker and Brady report their findings to the US President (Idris Elba) and Secretary of Defence Baker (Jared Harris). As minutes tick by, officials are forced to consider the unthinkable: a retaliatory nuclear strike.
1 mins
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
What Asean and buoyant Manchester United have in common
Years of underachievement, now a moment in the sun. For both, the hard part comes next.
4 mins
October 30, 2025
The Straits Times
Advertising Extend SkillsFuture safeguards to financial marketing
I refer to your Oct 8 report “SkillsFuture training providers barred from using third-party promoters from Dec 1”.
1 min
October 30, 2025
Listen
Translate
Change font size