The All-Star who had his career ended by ‘Wembanyama injury’

Just days after appearing at the NBA All-Star Game, Victor Wembanyama’s season is over.

The second-year sensation was found to have deep vein thrombosis, a form of blood clot, in his right shoulder. Typically, the condition is treated with blood-thinning medications which makes contract sport too dangerous.

“I think everybody understands that basketball is what we do and not who we are,” teammate Chris Paul said. “So, life and everything is so much more important, but for us, we know losing a big part of our team like that is [remedied] by committee. And trust me, you can’t replace Vic. I can’t stand on a guy’s shoulders and block every shot that comes to the rim.”

The Spurs have insisted that they expect Wembanyama to make a full recovery but severe blood clots have hampered the careers of other stars. Former Toronto Rapids and Miami Heats power forward Chris Bosh was an 11-time All-Star from 2006 to 2016, before a recurring condition cut his career short.

In 2015 Bosh was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism, essentially blood clots in his lungs, after experiencing chest pains. He was ruled out for the remainder of the season but return in October. The following February, another blood clot was identified in his legs. He was ruled out for the remainder of the season and the Heat eventually waived his contract, going on to retire his jersey in 2019.

Wembanyama, however, should avoid that fate and is expected to make a full recovery for the 2025/26 season. The Frenchman only turned 21 last month but he’s already one of the league’s most effective young players. Spurs acting head coach Mitch Johnson emphasised that the medical team are very optimistic about his long-term fitness.

“The medical experts and the people that are smarter than everybody in the room have said and confirm that he’ll be done this year and there is no concern for Victor’s long-term health, personally, or anything related to his basketball activities,” Johnson explained. “There is no reason to believe he won’t be ready to go starting next season.”

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