San Antonio Spurs fans must have had a heart in their mouth moment when they saw Victor Wembanyama impede on Jalen Brunson’s landing space on a made three-pointer in the third quarter of Game 5 of the NBA Finals. Brunson ended up making a three-pointer, but even in real time, it looked as though Wembanyama’s leg invaded the New York Knicks guard’s landing space — an infringement that officials typically call a flagrant foul on.
In the end, the officials decided to swallow their whistles and let the play go on. The Spurs proceeded to hit a three on the other end with Brunson still down on the ground, going eye for an eye with the Knicks. Brunson, understandably, was irate and even yelled in the face of official Tyler Ford as the Knicks called a timeout.
It’s nothing new for the NBA to call a retroactive flagrant foul, especially on blatant infractions. But this foul from the Spurs star may not be as clear cut in the eyes of the NBA, as ClutchPoints NBA insider Brett Siegel argued.
Siegel noted that Brunson may have done an “extra leg stretch” which then caused him to land on Wembanyama’s foot. The NBA could then construe this move from Brunson as an unnatural motion, which may end up being their reasoning for refusing to call a retroactive flagrant foul on Wembanyama should the 2026 NBA Finals require a Game 6.
Not that this shouldn’t have been called a foul, because it definitely should’ve, but the extra leg stretch by Brunson is why I would be surprised if this gets upgraded to a flagrant tomorrow.
At least, this is the explanation we’ll get.
Should it be? Probably. Will it be? No. https://t.co/CULNWEi8pI
— Brett Siegel (@BrettSiegelNBA) June 14, 2026
Now, it was clear that the officials missed a blatant foul call on Wembanyama. But Wembanyama has three flagrant foul points to his name in this year’s playoffs. Another one would mean an automatic suspension, and if the Spurs were to survive Game 5, not having Wembanyama for a Game 6 at the Madison Square Garden would be a disaster.
The NBA also may not prefer to have Wembanyama sit out one of the biggest games of the 2025-26 season, so the retroactive lens may look kindly towards the Spurs star’s purported transgressions.
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