Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) dunks the ball during the NBA game against the Sacramento Kings at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas, on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (Andrew J. Whitaker/San Antonio Express-News) Jeff McDonald Wed, October 28, 2026 at 5:10 AM UTC About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The oldest player on the Spurs' active roster went zipping through the lane in garbage time Tuesday, soaring for a surprising dunk that got everyone else on the bench up and cheering.
Harrison Barnes' out-of-nowhere slam not only put the finishing touches on the Spurs' 130-103 demolition of the woeful Sacramento Kings at the Frost Bank Center.
It also drew the appreciation of one Victor Wembanyama.
"I stood up so quick I started getting dizzy," Wembanyama said.
Having slogged through a sluggish 1-2 start to the season, the defending Western Conference champs discovered the best way to get back to feeling like themselves.
It involves scheduling the Sacramento Kings.
Wembanyama went for 29 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks, Julian Champagnie supplied eight 3-pointers and 26 points off the bench and the Spurs rolled to their most lopsided win of the season.
"Every game has gotten a little bit better," said coach Mitch Johnson, whose team has won two in a row after beginning 0-2. "I thought they came to play tonight."
Give the 0-4 Kings credit for being a willing participant of their own demise.
Domantas Sabonis tallied 20 points and 14 rebounds, DeAndre Hunter scored 24 and Zach LaVine chipped in 22.
None of that was remotely enough to get the Kings within sniffing distance of their first victory of the season.
The Spurs led 80-54 at half and by as many as 27 points in the second half. Scoreboard aside, the Spurs were most interested in their own improvement.
Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) celebrates a win during the NBA game against the Sacramento Kings at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas, on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (Andrew J. Whitaker/San Antonio Express-News)
"Whether the ball is going through the hoop or not, our standard stays the same," Champagnie said. "We came out and did exactly what we were supposed to do. We played exactly how we want to play."
Here are three takeaways from Tuesday's victory, which evened the Spurs' record at 2-2 heading into a Wednesday showdown at Utah:
Throughout an up-and-down start to the season for Wembanyama, Spurs coaches and teammates have talked about the need to make their All-Star center's life easier on the offensive end.
One number summed up how successful the Spurs were in that endeavor Tuesday.
Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) dunks the ball during the NBA game against the Sacramento Kings at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas, on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (Andrew J. Whitaker/San Antonio Express-News)
That's how many dunks Wembanyama registered against the Kings, equaling a career single-game high.
For comparison, the 7-foot-4 center had totaled 10 dunks in his first three games.
Within the first 2:19 Tuesday, Wembanyama had scored a pair of baskets on lob passes from De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle.
To hear Wembanyama tell it, the Spurs would love to start every game this way.
"We always try to do it," Wembanyama said. "It's the most efficient shot in the game."
That idea doesn't always work out well. It did Tuesday.
In all, 24 of Wembanyama's 29 points against Sacramento came at the rim.
It was a far cry from Wembanyama's previous performance at the Frost Bank Center, when he went a career-worst 1-of-13 from the field in the Spurs' season-opening loss to Oklahoma City.
How did the Spurs make Wembanyama's life easier?
"Better spacing, cleaner execution, he continued to roll and trust it and allow his teammates to make him better at times," Johnson said. "And on the other end they rewarded him in that."
By halftime Tuesday, Champagnie had turned in a curious box score.
"Hey listen," Champagnie said. "I'll take eight makes and two airballs."
Champagnie six 3-pointers during a sizzling second quarter tied a Spurs record. His eight 3-pointers in the first half, meanwhile, matched his own record set last New Year's Eve against New York.
His teammates kept finding him for open looks. He kept knocking them down.
By game's end, Champagnie couldn't quite reach the lofty heights he did that night against the Knicks, when he finished with a club-record 11 3-pointers. He went 1 of 3 from beyond the arc in the second half Tuesday to finish 8 of 13.
It was all part of the Spurs' best 3-point shooting night of the season, as they made 17 of 37 from long range.
Through the first three games, Johnson maintained that the team's process for generating clean shots beyond the arc remained sound. The Spurs just weren't hitting enough of them.
That all changed Tuesday, with the Spurs' shooters followed Champagnie's lead.
Sacramento rookie Darius Acuff Jr. entered Tuesday chasing a record of his own.
Whether that was a good thing or bad thing is in the eye of the beholder.
Acuff, selected 7 th overall in the June draft, came into the contest having launched 73 field-goal attempts, the most in NBA history for a first-year player in his first three games. The previous mark of 64 was set by Kevin Durant in 2006-07, when he played for Seattle.
Before the game, Kings coach Doug Christie described Acuff as "unflappable" and "the ultimate competitor."
"He's not ducking anything, that's for sure," Christie said.
Acuff got up another 20 shot attempts against the Spurs, extending his own record for most 20-shot games to open a career to four. There are those in NBA circles who question the wisdom of letting a rookie get his feet wet in league by shot chucking.
Acuff's heavy shot diet hasn't exactly resulted in wins for the Kings. He has not been the paragon of efficiency, either.
The 19-year-old guard went 8 of 20 on Tuesday for 19 points, bringing his season shooting percentage to 32.9%.
It is already shaping up to be a long season in Sacramento. Acuff could provide plenty of highlights.
It is worth wondering whether the shot-heavy approach the Kings are pushing will hinder the youngster's growth.
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This article originally published at 3 Takeaways as Wembanyama and the Spurs get right vs. Sacramento Kings .
Source: Sports
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