Vinnie’s View: Stifling of Victor Wembanyama reminds us that new-look Suns will take a little time

Victor Wembanyama highlights didn’t lead SportsCenter on Sunday night.

This has been a regular occurrence since the French phenom entered the league as the most hyped prospect in decades back in 2023. It was becoming more regular this season, when the man they called “Wemby” averaged 30 points, almost 15 rebounds and nearly five blocked shots per game in San Antonio’s first five contests of the season.

The reason the highlight-viewing world didn’t see Wemby to lead the broadcast?

The Suns’ defensive tactics and effort made Wemby look like an unsure rookie in Phoenix’s convincing 130-118 win over the Spurs.

Head coach Jordan Ott and his staff’s game plan to put smaller players on Wembanyama and double-team him aggressively in spots worked wonders.

Want proof? Look at Wemby’s stat line: nine points on 4-of-14 shooting and six turnovers. It’s only the fifth time in his career the “Alien” has been held to single-digit scoring.

It wasn’t all about defense. The Suns shot the heck out of the ball from three-point range, hitting 19-of-33 attempts on the night. It’s the fourth-best three-point shooting night in franchise history in a game with 30 or more attempts.

The Suns hit five straight from deep in a dizzying span of 4:15 in the first quarter. In the second and third quarters, they’d combine to hit six in a row over a span of 9:51.

And it wasn’t one player. Grayson Allen, Royce O’Neale, Ryan Dunn, Collin Gillespie and Jordan Goodwin all had three or more makes from beyond the arc.

One final note: if the weekend for the Suns needed a title, it would be “How Booker Got His Groove Back.”

Book was an efficient assassin on Sunday, pumping in 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting while dishing 13 assists. And let’s face it, he hadn’t been bad in the Suns’ first five games, but something looked different despite what oversensitive superfans of No. 1 had to say anonymously on social media.

Book was Book again in his one-on-one battle with Spurs guard Stephon Castle. Things got chippy with a lot of talking, and Booker was taking great pride in lighting up Castle, as evidenced by his wry smile going back on defense after sinking shots on Castle on at least a couple of occasions.

The Suns’ weekend performance reminded a lot of people that this is a new season with a new roster — and guided by a new staff with a new attitude. Let’s give this a little time.

Vince Marotta has been the Phoenix Suns’ PA announcer since 2016 in addition to his duties as co-host of Bickley & Marotta. On weekdays after Suns home games, you can listen to Vinnie’s View on Arizona Sports 98.7 at 7 a.m. or read what he saw from the front row at Mortgage Matchup Center here.

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