Minnesota Timberwolves standout Naz Reid took a hard elbow from San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama during Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals. The incident occurred with 8:39 remaining in the second quarter.
As both players fought for a rebound, Wembanyama swung his elbow into the area near Reid’s chin and throat. Officials reviewed the play and handed the Spurs star a Flagrant 2 foul, resulting in an automatic ejection.
Despite the heavy contact, Reid remained in the game and posted 15 points, nine rebounds, and four assists over 31 minutes. When asked about the hit during the postgame press conference, the Timberwolves forward responded with a gritty tone.
“Pain is weakness leaving the body. That’s it,” Reid said.
At the time of his ejection, Wembanyama had logged 12 minutes, scoring four points on 2-for-5 shooting, along with four rebounds and one assist. His exit may have shifted the momentum, as Minnesota went on to win 114-109.
Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson called for better officiating protection for Wembanyama, who has faced increasing physicality throughout the series. “The physicality people try to impose on him and the lack of protection is really disappointing,” Johnson said. “At some level, it’s starting to get actually disgusting, just in terms of when he tries to fight through things and be professional and mature and deal with some of that stuff.”
Johnson also hinted that if the referees don’t step in, Wembanyama may need to take matters into his own hands. “I do think it’s getting to a point that if the people who are in charge of controlling the game and protecting the physicality of the game don’t do that, at some point he’s going to have to protect himself,” Johnson added. “We’ve been asking him to do that for a while.”
For his part, Wembanyama downplayed the physicality, noting it’s typical of NBA playoff basketball.