Lorenzo Reyes, USA TODAY Sat, October 24, 2026 at 5:16 AM UTC · 1 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Victor Wembanyama is listed at 7-foot-4. He is — unquestionably — one of the supremely gifted players, especially around the rim.
Amen Thompson is 6-foot-7, though — to be sure — a freak athlete.
Yet, with the game on the line with five seconds left to play and the San Antonio Spurs trailing by two, Wembanyama called for the ball in the post. He had the size advantage on Thompson, who was, at this point, holding his own. But Wembanyama received the ball and spun in one motion, extending the ball with his long arms toward the rim.
It looked, quite comfortably, that the game was about to be tied.
But Thompson leapt up and met Wembanyama's sweeping layup attempt and swatted away the ball to preserve the Houston Rockets lead.
It's not often Wembanyama gets blocked, but in this matchup between two of the game's best defenders, it was the shorter Thompson who sealed Houston's 114-110 victory.
The block lifted the Rockets to a perfect 2-0 record to start the season, while simultaneously sinking the Spurs to 0-2.
Thompson played a stellar game, scoring 20 points on 9-of-15 shooting, adding 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks.
Wembanyama struggled from the floor, shooting 9-of-21, though he finished with 25 points, 13 rebounds and 2 assists.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rockets' Amen Thompson blocks Victor Wembanyama at rim in final seconds as Spurs fall to 0-2
Source: Sports
