How Devin Vassell's 'extremely mature performance' helped save Spurs in Utah
· Yahoo Sports
SALT LAKE CITY - The Spurs' decisive 12-0 run in overtime of Wednesday night's 117-111 victory over Utah had Devin Vassell's fingerprints all over it.
After Brice Sensabaugh got things started in the extra session with a 3-pointer that gave the Jazz a 108-105 lead, Vassell responded with a 10-foot jumper in the lane. One minute later, his two-handed follow slam after Josh Green blocked Dylan Harper's layup attempt gave the Spurs a 111-108 lead. Thirty-five seconds later, Vassell fed Victor Wembanyama with a long lob pass that resulted in an easy bucket for a seven-point cushion.
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"He was tremendous, especially coming down the stretch," Spurs forward Keldon Johnson said of Vassell. "He got some nice buckets. Some big rebounds. He made some big shots, made great decisions. He did everything we needed for him to do to get the win."
That included his Johnny-on-the-spot put back after the block on Harper.
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"It's like elementary school stuff when they always say follow somebody's shot, right?" Vassell said with a smile. "I was the only person down there, so I knew I was going to be able to get a put back. So just follow the play. It was a crucial time in a game, and you don't give up on plays like that."
The play highlighted what Spurs coach Mitch Johnson called an "extremely mature performance" by the seventh-year pro, who scored 17 of his 21 points after halftime.
In 37 minutes, Vassell also recorded five rebounds, three steals and two assists. Without him stepping up to complement Wembanyama, who finished with 36 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks, it's unlikely the Spurs (3-2) would have escaped from the Delta Center with a victory over the undermanned but scrappy Jazz to run their winning streak to three games.
"That's something I've been trying to embody over the past two years, just being a leader of the team," Vassell said. "I've been here for a long time and try and do it with my actions, try to do it with how I play. And the fact that Mitch, Vic and my teammates have confidence in me to close out the game and have the ball in my hands shows a lot of growth and maturity."
Wemby on a "mature" performance from Devin Vassell against the Jazz: "He is sure in what he does, but we are also sure in what he does. We've got full trust in him." https://t.co/hy1uYyN9LF
- Spurs Nation (@Spurs_Nation) October 29, 2026
Wembanyama agreed.
"I feel like his years being here give him this feeling of being sure of what he does," Wembanyama said. "He is sure of what he does, but we are also sure of what he does. We got full trust in him. And we know he's a guy, we like the ball to find him in these moments."
Vassell was also big in the final minutes of regulation, scoring back-to-back buckets on a 15-foot pull-up jumper and a layup in a 47-second span to give the Spurs a 105-100 lead with 2:27 remaining.
But it was his play in overtime that made the biggest difference in the Spurs surviving on the second game of a back-to-back against a young, talented group that played without stars Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee) and Lauri Markkanen (wrist) but still managed to lead by 11 points in the second quarter before battling back and forth with the defending Western Conference champions after halftime.
"I thought tonight was a good microcosm of his season so far in terms of he's missed a lot of shots that I have no doubt he's going to (eventually) make," Mitch Johnson said, referring to Vassell going 1 of 7 from 3-point range and shooting just 33.3% from distance for the season after hitting 38.4% last season. "But the way that he's playing and the energy he's putting into the game, that's how you're able to miss a lot of good shots and then make really big shots down the stretch.
San Antonio Spurs guards Devin Vassell (24) and De'aaron Fox (4) play during the fourth quarter against the Houston Rockets at Moody Center in Austin, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. The Spurs fell 114-110 to the Rockets. (Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News)"And it wasn't just about a shot making, he was just very mature throughout the whole game and since the season started."
The Spurs will face the Jazz twice more before mid-November. That's a scary thought after Baylor-ex Keyonte George pumped in 31 points, second-year pro Ace Bailey had 19 points and rookie Darryn Peterson scored 18.
Jackson probably won't be ready when the teams meet again Nov. 2 at the Frost Bank Center, but Markkanen could be back.
But no matter who Utah has, the Spurs believe coach Will Hardy will have them ready to play.
"It's always good to win in this league," Vassell said. "It's not easy winning in this league, and on a back-to-back against a team who's hungry, it's always tough. (But) being able to have these type of games, going into overtime, (having to) execute down the stretch (is a good thing). These are the type of games that you need to be a really good team in the long run."
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