Editors’ note, May 27,1:40 p.m. ET: This story has been updated to reflect that Victor Wembanyama was warned, but not fined, by the NBA for skipping media availability.
After the Spurs lost a critical Game 5 of the Western Conference finals against the Thunder, San Antonio’s biggest star was noticeably nowhere to be found.
Victor Wembanyama, voted the most “media-friendly player” in the NBA by the Professional Basketball Writers Association this year, shunned his media duties and immediately left the locker room following the Spurs’ 127–114 loss on the road.
Victor Wembanyama, who struggled mightily in the Spurs’ Game 5 loss in OKC, declined to do media this evening. He just left the PayCom Center as midnight central time nears.
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) May 27, 2026
The league mused over a decision on whether to issue Wembanyama a fine after his decision to duck the media, The Athletic’s Sam Amick confirmed Wednesday morning. In a move that disregarded the NBA’s media availability and access policies, Wembanyama chose not to stick around to speak with reporters, an uncharacteristic breakaway from his typically polite and gracious postgame behavior. Wembanyama’s choice to avoid the media “spoke volumes about how he sees the seriousness of his team’s situation,” Amick wrote, but ultimately didn’t cost him anything monetarily.
Based on past history, the 22-year-old could have been hit with a hefty financial punishment from the NBA.
In the 2023 Eastern Conference finals, then-Heat guard Jimmy Butler declined to make himself available to the media after winning Game 3 against the Celtics. He was later fined $25,000. That same year, then-Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks was also fined $25,000 for avoiding postgame media interviews on multiple occasions during Memphis’ first-round series loss against the Lakers.
Outside of the NBA, the punishments for players shunning media responsibilities can vary. In the NFL, Seahawks legend Marshawn Lynch reportedly was fined $50,000 for violating the league’s media policy after refusing to speak with reporters following a regular-season loss back in 2014. As for a different form of discipline, the NHL made the Vegas Golden Knights pay for ducking the media after eliminating the Anaheim Ducks in the playoffs earlier this month. Vegas was forced to forfeit a second-round draft pick in the 2026 draft, and Golden Knights coach John Tortorella was also fined $100,000.
NBA warns Wembanyama for skipping media availability
On Wednesday the news broke that the Spurs superstar had avoided any sort of financial penalty for his decision to skip media availability.
Per multiple reports, the NBA gave an official warning to Wembanyama over the situation. This will probably be the only pass he gets. If Wemby opts to blow off the media again in the coming days, the league could and likely would pivot to slapping the star center with a hefty fine in line with the punishment Butler received a few years ago.
For now, however, the young talent escapes any substantive punishment.
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