Victor Wembanyama returns to Paris and drops 30 points as Spurs crush Pacers with 140-110 win

On Thursday, Victor Wembanyama returned to Paris in style.

The San Antonio Spurs star, who grew up outside Paris and spent five years playing in the French basketball league, returned to his homeland this week with a game against the Indiana Pacers. With the Paris crowd firmly in his corner, Wembanyama led the Spurs to a dominant 140-110 victory over the Pacers at the Accor Arena in Paris.

The 21-year-old center was greeted by the French home crowd with an appreciative roar.

Wembanyama did not let the crowd down, putting on a show for his homecoming with a number of key highlights as Spurs ran up.

After trailing the Pacers for most of the first half, the Spurs took the lead just before halftime. From there, San Antonio took off, with the team putting up 45 points in the third quarter alone. An overwhelmed Indiana team couldn’t overcome the deficit and eventually fell apart in the 30-point victory.

With the game locked, Wembanyama and the rest of the starters returned to the bench for the final minutes of the match. When the 21-year-old took his seat, he was greeted with shouts of “MVP” from around the arena.

Wembanyama finished with an impressive 30-point double-double, with a final stat line of 30 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and five blocks.

Wembanyama has been busy with his return to France. On Tuesday, the young center inaugurated two outdoor pitches in his hometown of Le Chesnay; on Wednesday he attended a Champions League match between Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City, which PSG won 4-2.

And on Thursday he got a big win for the struggling Spurs on his home ground.