Victor Wembanyama stats vs. Mavericks: Spurs star stacks highlights, puts NBA on notice with dominance in return

Daniel Mader

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Victor Wembanyama stats vs. Mavericks: Spurs star stacks highlights, puts NBA on notice with dominance in return image

Assuming he could stay healthy, the 2025-26 season had been circled as the potential year Victor Wembanyama fully took over the NBA. He had a strong rookie season, then got off to a good start in 2024-25 before an injury, but there was a general consensus among media members and fans entering the new league year that the San Antonio Spurs big man could soon hit another gear.

On Wednesday night, Wembanyama may have offered the first glimpses of his new norm: pure dominance on both ends of the floor.

As the Spurs opened their 2025-26 season against the Dallas Mavericks on the road, a matchup between the No. 1 overall pick (Cooper Flagg) and No. 2 pick (Dylan Harper), Wembanyama took over. He made ridiculous plays all night, throwing down ferocious dunks, hitting long-range jumpers and eliminating Dallas' shot attempts, leading San Antonio to a 125-92 victory.

Along the way, he stunned fans with the kinds of plays he was making at 7-foot-5 -- as ESPN analyst Jay Bilas put it during the broadcast, it was "like watching Tiger Woods hit a golf ball, but if he were seven-five."

Here's a look at Wembanyama's collection of unreal plays against the Mavericks on opening night, plus how NBA fans were reacting to his performance.

MORE: How many points did Cooper Flagg score in his NBA debut?

Victor Wembanyama stats vs. Mavericks

  • Minutes:  30
  • Points:  40
  • Rebounds: 15
  • Assists: 1
  • Steals: 1
  • Blocks: 3
  • TOs: 0
  • PF: 4
  • FG: 15-21
  • 3FG: 1-2
  • FT: 9-11

Wembanyama posted his fifth career game with at least 40 points, doing so in just 30 minutes while shooting 71.4 percent from the floor. He set a new Spurs record for points in a season-opener along the way, surpassing George Gervin's 39 points in the 1977 opener.

According to Real Sports, Wembanyama became the youngest center (21) in NBA history to reach five career 40-point games. Additionally, he joined Joel Embiid in 2023 and Anthony Davis in 2017 as the only players to ever post 40 points and 15 rebounds in 30 minutes or less, per Polymarket.

Wembanyama became the sixth player to have 40 points and 15 rebounds in a season-opener, per Jordan Howenstine.

MORE: Where V.J. Edgecombe's 34 points ranked among highest-scoring NBA debuts

Victor Wembanyama highlights vs. Mavericks

Wembanyama got to work quickly in his return to action from last year's injury. He put up a quick six points against Anthony Davis, including an emphatic jam.

Spurs fans got glimpses of their future star duo of Harper and Wembanyama toward the end of the first quarter — the guard fed the big man on a nice look, and Wembanyama finished it off with another nice dunk.

San Antonio's young guards had a feel for where Wembanyama would be all night. Stephon Castle also found the star center for a reverse alley-oop jam, and the two got hype afterwards:

The athletic dunks for the 7-footer would not end. Perhaps his most impressive of the night came in as halftime approached; Wembanyama pump-faked against P.J. Washington, who bit, and then wrapped around the basket for a beautiful reverse throwdown, also drawing the foul.

"A figment of our basketball imaginations," ESPN play-by-play announcer Ryan Ruocco said.

Despite all the length in Dallas' frontcourt, Wembanyama was giving any Mavericks big man the work. He was at 21 points by halftime, with buckets against Washington, Anthony Davis and Dereck Lively II.

Wembanyama's top defensive highlight: one of his three blocks, which came in the second quarter. It led to perhaps his best series of the evening: first, he completely eliminated a shot attempt from Lively, then hit a James Harden-esque stepback 3-pointer, plus the foul, on the other end.

He added some more easy dunks and jump shots in the second half, then was able to hit the bench after just 30 minutes due to the lead he helped the Spurs build.

Here's a full clip of Wembanyama highlights from Wednesday night:

Social media reacts to Victor Wembanyama's first game of season

Some NBA fans and media members couldn't believe what they were seeing out of Wembanyama on Wednesday night.

Here are some of the top reactions, memes and more that came from Wembanyama's terrific performance:

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