Victor Wembanyama shares honest feelings after bittersweet Christmas debut

Victor Wembanyama stunned the crowd at Madison Square Garden on Christmas Day. The San Antonio Spurs faced the New York Knicks in their holiday matchup, and the reigning Rookie of the Year delivered a phenomenal performance.

Wembanyama recorded an impressive double-double, scoring 42 points and grabbing 18 rebounds while also tallying four assists and four blocks. Despite his efforts, the Knicks edged out the Spurs 117-114.

After the game, Wembanyama addressed the media in a postgame press conference, sharing his mixed emotions about the loss.

"I think it was a game about being dogs when the clock starts going down," Wembanyama asaid. "We let them get some rebounds on us. We let them move us a little too much, so this is more what it was about. They didn't win against us because they played better basketball. Not at all."

The game marked Victor Wembanyama's first Christmas Day game, and while the loss was disappointing, his performance left fans in awe.

Victor Wembanyama reflects on Spurs' shortcomings after historic Christmas Day debut

Victor Wembanyama was the best basketball player in Madison Square Garden on Tuesday but his individual efforts couldn't help his team win.

After the loss, Wembanyama reflected on his team's shortcomings. Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express reported his statements in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

"I'm thinking about the game right now and just thinking, we're close, but we lack some attributes," Wembanyama said.

Chris Paul also urged the young players on his team to become more professional and develop the grit necessary to survive in the league.

"We got to get to that point where all that 'young guy' stuff got to go out the window. We pros just like everybody else and there's a grit and a will that you got to have in this league in order to figure out ways to win those games, especially on the road," Paul said.

Following their Christmas Day loss, the Spurs dropped to an even 15-15 record, good for 11th in the Western Conference.