On Tuesday night, San Antonio Spurs superstar Victor Wembanyama suffered an injury early in Game 2 of their series against the Portland Trail Blazers. Although if this were the NFL this would be terrible news for a return to Game 3, the NBA's concussion protocols are a little different.
After an impressive win in the opening match of their quarterfinal series, Spurs' chances of progressing to the semi-finals are no longer off the table. In the opening minutes of Game 2, Defensive Player of the Year and MVP contender Victor Wembanyama fumbled while driving to the basket. Although this is nothing out of the ordinary, in this incident he landed directly on his face, chin first.
Immediately, it looked like injury was possible as it took him a long time to regain his balance and get back to his feet. Unfortunately for the Spurs, he was ultimately ruled out for the remainder of the game and placed in the NBA's concussion protocol.
NFL fans are accustomed to concussion protocols, and there is no guarantee of a return to next Sunday's game in that game. What would suggest Wembanyama returning to action in Games 3, 4 or 5 is now up in the air. However, NBA concussion protocols are a little different.
When is Victor Wembanyama most likely to return for Spurs
Both leagues' codes of conduct for dealing with brain concussions begin with athletes having very little physical performance in the first 24 hours. However, in the NFL, players must go through four different phases where they must not show any symptoms for a 24-hour period before moving to the next phase. This is why this process often takes several days, and being ready for the game next week is no guarantee.
However, in the NBA, after 48 hours, if a player is not showing symptoms of an injury, they are gradually eased back into team activities. Still, as The Athletic's Zack Harper noted Wednesday morning, Wembanyama still "must meet several standards in this ramp-up to playing again and then be cleared by both the team doctor and the league's protocol director." The process is less rigorous than that of the NFL.
So a comeback in Game 3 on Friday in Portland seems unlikely, but it can't be completely ruled out. However, it seems appropriate for Vembanyama to return for Game 4 on Sunday. Still, on today's edition of ESPN RiseNetwork NBA analyst Vincent Goodwill said the Spurs have always been a cautious organization. They probably take a very conservative approach with their long golden goose.
This means Spurs fans should be prepared for the possibility that their young superstar will miss the next two games of their series, and a return for Game 5 next Tuesday seems to be the most likely scenario.
