Chris Finch Says Four Wembanyama Blocks Were Goaltends — Spurs Game Tonight

Chris Finch said at least four Victor Wembanyama blocks in spurs game tonight were goaltends, turning a Game 1 rim-protection debate into an officiating issue. San Antonio lost on the final possession when Julian Champagnie missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Finch did not frame it as a small miss. He tied the calls to eight points and said, "You know the value of eight points in an NBA game? It's massive, right? That's also 33 percent of his blocks, were goaltending, uncalled. If I were to give you a 33 percent raise, you'd like that, right? That's a huge number."

Finch and Wembanyama

Wembanyama's rim protection was already one of the main stories from Game 1 against Minnesota, and the dispute around those blocks only sharpened it. A social-media compilation of his rejections listed three definite goaltends, while two of the clearest examples reportedly hit the glass before he swatted them away and should have counted as baskets.

Finch said Wembanyama got away with goaltending shots instead of clean blocks. The Wolves coach put the number at at least four and said the calls were worth eight points in a game decided on the final possession.

Game 1 Final Possession

Minnesota still had enough to win after surviving that finish, and the margin matters because it keeps the call dispute from staying theoretical. The Spurs were one shot away from forcing a different ending, and Champagnie's missed 3-pointer left the conversation centered on what happened before the buzzer, not after it.

The Wolves are not going to stop attacking Wembanyama any time soon, and Finch said the refs will have to monitor the calls better. That leaves Minnesota with one clear reading of Game 1: keep challenging him at the rim, and keep pressing the issue if the same calls do not come.

Chris Paul at 41

Chris Paul turned 41 on the day of the newsletter, another number attached to a Spurs story already built around Wembanyama's block total and Minnesota's complaint about how those plays were scored. For now, the series has a live officiating argument sitting next to the basketball result.