Several fans slammed Oklahoma City Thunder guard Lu Dort for what some considered a cheap shot on San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama during the NBA’s Christmas Day slate.
The Thunder and Spurs faced off again on Thursday for the second time in three days. After losing their last two contests against San Antonio, the defending champs entered the game with some added fire in front of their home crowd at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Okla.
Dort may have revved his engine a little too much on a play toward the end of the first half. Instead of crashing the defensive glass on a De’Aaron Fox miss, Dort ended up crashing into Wembanyama’s lower leg.
Dort wanted to take OUT Wemby 😳 pic.twitter.com/JgY3SvGIPj
— Logion Noops (@LogionNoops) December 25, 2025
Wembanyama grabbed at his calf after the collision but ended up playing through the pain. Some fans called Dort out for rumbling into Wemby from the Frenchman’s blind side.
@okcthunder why I would never respect your franchise, who put a Hit on Wembanyama Knees? Dort went straight for it. pic.twitter.com/9VoIT5gCTX
— Apollo24zZ (SAS 23-7) (@Apollo24zZ) December 25, 2025
dort blatantly trying to injure wemby right infront of everyone btw https://t.co/VpR9ogrvEW
— dyl (@kaaaardiff) December 25, 2025
Dort with multiple cheap shots at wemby at the end of the half
— Erick (@Erick68873675) December 25, 2025
Dort should be suspended for half the season for trying to hurt wembanyama. Is this what the OKC coach is teaching them to do to good players?
— عاطف داؤد (@aTiFdAwOoD) December 25, 2025
Dort and a few other Thunder players have a reputation for being overly aggressive on defense, which sometimes leads to some questionable moments on the court. However, in fairness to Dort, Wembanyama is over a foot taller than he is. Boxing someone out is a much more complicated endeavor when your opponent is 7’5″ or potentially even taller.
Despite Dort’s best efforts, the Thunder were not able to erase the narrative that the Spurs have their number. Wembanyama battled through the leg issue to finish with 19 points and 11 rebounds in a 117-102 San Antonio win.
Wemby also outplayed his rival, Chet Holmgren, who tallied 10 points and 12 rebounds in the contest. Perhaps Dort’s cheap shot was in response to Wembanyama mocking Holmgren earlier in the game.
