Why is Victor Wembanyama not playing in California Classic tonight?

The San Antonio Spurs will start playing at the California Classic Summer League tonight without Victor Wembanyama. The first overall pick will sit out the games in Sacramento but will make the trip to Las Vegas, where he will make his Summer League debut.

In an interview with Michael C. Wright of NBA.com, Spurs assistant coach Matt Nielsen explained why Wembanyama won't be at the California Classic. Nielsen said that they want Wembanyama to get some rest after a busy few weeks.

"He's obviously had a lot going on over the last couple of weeks, finishing his own Finals series (in France) and everything else after that," Nielsen said. "The plan is he won't come with us to Sacramento, but he'll be ready to go in Vegas. When we leave to go to Sac, he'll stay here and get workouts. He's a fantastic basketball player. He can do a lot of things."

He continued:

"He's very versatile. I think that's the exciting part. He's got a lot to learn about NBA basketball, the Spurs way. There's a lot going on for him, and it's just exciting to watch him out there."

The San Antonio Spurs are set to take on the Charlotte Hornets and LA Lakers at the California Classic Summer League. Victor Wembanyama wanted to play against the Lakers, as per Michael C. Wright.

However, Wembanyama understands that he will have to get some rest after playing in the LNB Pro A Finals for Metropolitans 92 before the NBA draft. He was also busy before the draft after arriving from France. He told reporters on Friday that he doesn't know how many minutes he will be playing in Las Vegas.

"I don't know how it works yet, how many minutes I'm going to play," Wembanyama said. "But I know I'm going to have a big role, it's going to be intense, and I can't wait to try to wear that Spurs jersey for the first time."

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How many games will Victor Wembanyama play at Las Vegas Summer League?

Victor Wembanyama speaking with NBA commissioner Adam Silver

Victor Wembanyama will be heading to Las Vegas on July 6 before the start of the NBA 2K23 Summer League. He will be joining his San Antonio Spurs teammates in practice and is expected to play the next day against Brandon Miller and the Charlotte Hornets, as per NBA.com.

The Spurs are then likely to play Wembanyama again for limited minutes on Jul. 9 against the Portland Trail Blazers before he returns to San Antonio. That means he will likely miss the team's games against the Washington Wizards and Detroit Pistons.