San Antonio Spurs coach Mitch Johnson announced on Monday that star center Victor Wembanyama has been medically cleared by the team and the NBA, returning from his right shoulder deep vein thrombosis (DVT), which ended his 2024-25 season in February.
Victor Wembanyama is winning the pace of NBA DPOY
Earlier this year, the Spurs said in a statement that the condition was a blood clot, and a blood clot was found after returning to San Antonio after the All-Star game.
The condition is usually treated with blood-diluted medications, which requires athletes to avoid contact sports such as basketball.
Wembanyama is the Rookie of the Year of 2023-24 and is also an All-Star for the first time, with an average of 24.3 points, 11 rebounds, 3.7 assists and a league-leading 3.8 blocks in 46 games last season.
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said Victor Wembanyama has been medically cleared by the Spurs and the NBA to return from the DVT, which ended his pre-season in February. pic.twitter.com/ma1gmgdzsx
– Jared Weiss (@jaredweissnba) September 29, 2025
Wembanyama is working hard to win the Defensive Player of the Year and receive all-defense and all-NBA honors.
The 21-year-old has scored 403 three-pointers and blocked 176. No player in NBA history has ended a season on these numbers, and Wemby did it before the All-Star Game.
But because the 7-foot-3 big man didn’t reach a minimum of 65 games, he was not eligible for All-NBA, Defensive Player of the Year and other major awards.
Last season, San Antonio made up eight points per 100 games when Wembanyama was off the court.
De’aaron Fox signs multi-year contract with Spurs
The Spurs scored 34-48 (.415) in the 2024-25 season, the best record since 2021-22.
They are now heading into 2025-26 with a strong core, which includes De’aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, Stephon Castle and Wembanyama.
San Antonio sent four first rounds to the Sacramento Kings to acquire Fox within the trade deadline.
Last month, Fox agreed to Krach Sports CEO Rich Paul told ESPN’s Shams Charania that it had reached a four-year, $229 million contract with the franchise.
Since Castle won Rookie of the Year last season and Dylan Harper was selected second in the 2025 NBA Draft, some league insiders questioned whether Fox would win the biggest contract.
Fox, who averaged 19.7 points and 6.8 assists in 17 games last season with the Spurs, had end-of-season surgery on March 18 to repair tendon damage in the lower left corner.
As his season ended prematurely, Wembanyama played five games and 120 minutes together with Fox. In a small portion of the property sample, they allowed 118.3 points per 100 properties, which was negative 4.3.
