Zubac yelled at the officials earlier in the third quarter for not calling a foul on Harrison Barnes after the Spurs forward blocked his layup. The frustration boiled over when Wembanyama blocked Zubac's attempted dunk with 4:49 remaining in the third quarter and no foul was called.

If there was any fear about Victor Wembanyama's adjustment to the NBA, it had to do with his frame. Wembanyama is one of the NBA's tallest players at 7-foot-3, but he is very skinny for his height and will almost certainly bulk up with more time in San Antonio's strength and conditioning program.

Victor Wembanyama didn't appreciate a shove from Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac as the two sprinted toward the hoop Wednesday night. The San Antonio Spurs' Harrison Barnes knocked down a three-pointer as Zubac sent Wembanyama flying into his own bench as the shot went through the net.

"It's very possible that he'll be the face of basketball. Not just NBA basketball, but world basketball," said Pacers coach Rick Carlisle.

The story, as Buford tells it, goes like this: Claudio Crippa, an international scout for the Spurs, proposed going to see a youth game before checking out Doumbouya. Buford saw Wembanyama play for the first time that day. And the seeds for the Spurs’ new master plan were immediately planted.

Victor Wembanyama was ready to become the world’s tallest kickboxer on Wednesday night.