Victor Wembanyama had a point to prove in Game 5, and Rudy Gobert ended up being the one who felt it most.
Coming off his first career ejection in Game 4, the San Antonio Spurs star came out locked in on Tuesday night and never let up. Wembanyama finished with 27 points, 17 rebounds and three blocks on 9-for-16 shooting as the Spurs dominated the Minnesota Timberwolves 126-97 to take a 3-2 series lead in the second round.
The ejection in Minneapolis had come after a Flagrant 2 call in the second quarter, when Wembanyama caught Naz Reid in the throat with an elbow during Minnesota’s 114-109 Game 4 win. Tuesday was a different story entirely.
Wembanyama Leaves Gobert Searching for Answers
The moment everyone is talking about came in the fourth quarter. Wembanyama caught the ball in the paint with Gobert draped on him, made a spin move, and faked the layup so convincingly that the four-time Defensive Player of the Year completely bit on it.
By the time Gobert realized the ball was gone, Wembanyama had already whipped a behind-the-back pass to Julian Champagnie for the basket. Gobert was still searching for the ball in Wemby’s hands while the points were going up on the board. Even Dylan Harper’s reaction said everything about how good the play was.
NBA fans wasted no time making Gobert the subject of every timeline on social media.
“😂 Rumor has it Gobert is still looking for the ball,” one fan noted.
“Legend has it Rudy Gobert is still standing there, spinning in circles 🤣” another added.
“3rd-year Wemby toying with a 4-time DPOY,” another fan said.
“Rudy Gobert lmfao where you looking at boy,” another poked fun at Gobert.
“Rudy Gobert playing patty cake out there,” one wrote while another added “Had Rudy Gobert twirlin’ n whirlin'”
Naz Reid had said before the game that he wanted to face a fully healthy Spurs squad. Wembanyama made sure that wish came with consequences.
Beyond Wembanyama, San Antonio got contributions across the board. De’Aaron Fox finished with 18 points and five assists. Keldon Johnson came off the bench to score 21 points in just 22 minutes, the strongest playoff performance of his career. Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper combined for 29 points as the Spurs spread the scoring around.
Wembanyama poured in 16 of his points within the first seven minutes before sitting briefly. Minnesota got a run going in that stretch through Anthony Edwards and Ayo Dosunmu, who finished with 20 and 16 points respectively. But San Antonio held a 12-point halftime advantage even after missing their last eight shots before the break and never looked back from there.
The Spurs head into Game 6 with a chance to close it out.
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This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on May 13, 2026, where it first appeared in the NBA section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
