San Antonio Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson voiced frustration with the officiating following Victor Wembanyama’s ejection during the team’s Game 4 loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Wembanyama was thrown out of the game after officials reviewed and upgraded his foul on Naz Reid to a Flagrant 2.
The play occurred when Wembanyama appeared to strike Reid in the face and neck area with an elbow during the contest.
After the game, Johnson suggested the situation was partly the result of the increasing physicality opposing teams have used against the Spurs star throughout the series.
“It’s getting to a point that if the people that are in charge of controlling the game and protecting the physicality of the game don’t do that, then at some point he’s going to have to protect himself,” Johnson said about Wembanyama reacting to opponents’ physicality.
Johnson also pushed back against any possibility of further discipline for the incident, saying he does not believe the play deserved a suspension.
San Antonio’s head coach said it “would be ridiculous” if Wembanyama was suspended for the foul.
“There was no intent,” Johnson said of Wembanyama foul on Reid.
The loss put the Spurs in a difficult position in the series while also raising more discussion around how teams are defending Wembanyama physically during the postseason.
Mitch Johnson Says Victor Wembanyama Has To ‘Protect Himself’ https://t.co/tdgJr18dH6
— RealGM (@RealGM) May 11, 2026
