Spurs Steady Without Wembanyama, Beat Kings 123–110
The Spurs improved to 9–4 while avoiding what would have been its third straight home loss.
SAN ANTONIO – Missing their franchise centerpiece and briefly losing their sophomore guard to injury, the San Antonio Spurs still found their rhythm Sunday afternoon, rolling past the struggling Sacramento Kings 123–110 at Frost Bank Center.
The Spurs were without Victor Wembanyama, sidelined with a left calf strain, and saw Stephon Castle exit in the first half with a left hip issue. Instead of unraveling, San Antonio leaned on ball movement, pace, and one of its most balanced scoring efforts of the season. Seven Spurs finished in double figures, and the team improved to 9–4 while avoiding what would have been its third straight home loss.
"There are obviously some lineups that we haven't had a lot of time and continuity with, and we had some guys play a few more minutes than they had played previously, and needed some guys that have been playing to take on some different roles," Spurs Head Coach Mitch Johnson said. "I thought everybody stepped up for the most part, still want to be more consistent at times."
De’Aaron Fox set the tone early, opening the game with back-to-back three-pointers and finishing with 28 points and 11 assists in his best performance of the season. Harrison Barnes added 20 points while Keldon Johnson chipped in 14 points and 12 rebounds, anchoring a frontcourt that had to compensate for Wembanyama’s absence.
"We just lost two games in a row," Fox said. "So you want to come out, you want to hit first and just try to take command of the game knowing that your game plan changes whenever you don't have Vic (Wembanyama) out there one and then you come back in half and no Steph's (Castle) not playing now. So I think we responded well to both of those things happening."
San Antonio used a 36-point first quarter and never lost control. Sacramento briefly trimmed the lead before halftime behind a burst from DeMar DeRozan, who scored a team-high 27 points. But the Kings —now 3–11 and on a six-game skid—never mounted a serious second-half charge. Domantas Sabonis posted 17 points and 13 rebounds, yet the Kings’ supporting cast offered little resistance against San Antonio’s deeper rotation.
The victory underscored the Spurs’ growing resilience. Even without their star rookie, they dictated tempo, shot efficiently from beyond the arc, and got key stretches from role players who had been inconsistent during the recent homestand.
The Spurs return to action Tuesday against the Memphis Grizzlies at 7 p.m. CDT.
