The Spurs announced Thursday that Victor Wembanyama, the team’s young 7-foot-5 star who has taken the NBA by storm, has a deep vein thrombosis — a blood clot — in his right shoulder. Because this condition can endanger his life as well as his health, he’s started treatment and been put on the disabled list for the remainder of the 2024-25 season. Here’s why that was the right call.
A deep vein thrombosis is a dangerous condition at any age. The loss of the team’s new star is a huge setback for the Spurs, which just acquired one-time All-Star guard De’Aaron Fox to reinforce their playoff push. Wembanyama, who played well in his first All-Star appearance last weekend in San Francisco, is already considered one of the league’s top players and was thought by many to be the odds-on favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year. Now, he won’t play enough games this season to be eligible for the award. But that short-term loss will likely extend his time on the court — and potentially his life — for years to come.
Wembanyama’s Deep Vein Thrombosis Is Not The First In The NBA
At least four other NBA players — the Detroit Pistons’ Ausar Thompson, the Toronto Raptors’ Brandon Ingram, the Los Angeles Lakers’ Christian Koloko and Hall of Famer Chris Bosh — have developed DVTs. Wembanyama’s situation reminded many of Bosh, who at the peak of his career sustained a DVT shortly after the 2015 All-Star break. Bosh had to be hospitalized because several of the clots broke free and ended up lodged in his lungs. Sadly, he was forced to retire the following year after he developed a second DVT. At that point, it was clear that he’d need to stay on anticoagulant medication (called blood thinners) and for that reason could no longer play in the NBA.
Bosh believes extensive league-related travel was the main cause of his blood clots, and he’s probably right. Long spells of sitting in airports and on airplanes is a common story among patients who come to the ER with one or more clots in their legs — or worse, evidence that a clot has broken free and traveled through the bloodstream to lodge in the lungs, a serious condition called a pulmonary embolus.
But as Tom Haberstroh, a contributing writer for Yahoo Sports, notes, there’s a key difference between Bosh’s blood clots and the one Wembanyama has. Bosh’s clots develped in his legs. Wembanyama’s blood clot is in the shoulder of his shooting arm.
That could be good news for Wembanyama, depending on what happens next.
What Causes Deep Vein Thrombosis?
There are several medical conditions (including certain disorders of the blood and some cancers) that increase the risk of DVT. Some medications can cause blood clots as a side effect. A blood clot affecting the subclavian vein (the main vein that drains blood from the arm) can occur following insertion of a large IV catheter or a cardiac pacemaker. None of these conditions are likely culprits in Wembanyama’s case.
When an arm clot spontaneously develops in a young, otherwise healthy individual, particularly a highly conditioned athlete like Wembanyama, it is most often due to subtle but significant anatomic variations of certain bones, tendons or muscles adjacent. This can cause a condition doctors refer to as “thoracic outlet syndrome.” These anatomic variations can intermittently compress or pinch the large vein that drains blood from the arm, often at the point it passes under the overlying collarbone (clavicle). Overhead motion can make this process worse, and Wembanyama’s job involves lots of overhead motion to block, rebound and make shots in games or during practice.
Deep Vein Thrombosis Treatment
I commend the Spurs’ staff for diagnosing his condition, promptly starting anticoagulant (clot-preventing) medication and immediately putting him on the disabled list. In come cases, patients benefit from receiving thrombolytic (clot-dissolving) medication, but that decision depends a careful assessment of several clinical factors, and and a discussion between the physician and patient regarding possible benefits and risks. In other cases, doctors prescribe clot-preventing medication to prevent further buildup and rely on the body’s natural processes to gradually dissolve what’s already there.
Pulling an All-Star player for the rest of the season is a huge loss for any team that’s contending for the NBA title. Regardless, the Spurs opted to put his health and future ahead of the present.
Upper arm clots, like those that develop in the legs, can break loose and travel to the lungs as a dangerous (and potentially lethal) pulmonary embolus. Had Wembanyama sustained a PE while playing in the All-Star game, he might have collapsed on the court. If he tried to play again before his health is fully restored, the risk would be too great.
In addition, patients taking anticoagulation medicine should not participate in contact sports because the risk of internal bleeding is too great. Although basketball is theoretically not considered a “contact sport,” anyone who has watched an NBA game for more than five minutes will tell you otherwise. This explains Wembanyama’s season-ending shift to the disabled list.
Recovering From Deep Vein Thrombosis: What Wembanyama’s Future Holds
What happens next could determine his athletic future. If the underlying problem is, in fact, thoracic outlet syndrome, he will almost certainly undergo surgery to relieve it. The risks associated with this type of procedure are generally low and the potential for a good recovery and return to play are high.
This is precisely what happened when Ingram, then playing forward for the Los Angeles Lakers, was diagnosed with an arm DVT in 2019. He was treated with anticoagulants, then underwent surgery, and recovered his prior form. Traded by the Lakers to the New Orleans Pelicans, he was so effective the following year that he played in the All-Star game and was named the league’s most-improved player. On Feb. 6, 2025, Ingram was traded to the Toronto Raptors, where he signed a three-year, $120 million contract extension.
If Wembanyama’s workup reveals an anatomic cause of his deep vein thrombosis, its very likely he’ll opt for surgery. If it does not, the next steps in his treatment — and his long-term future in the NBA — will be less certain.
I don’t bet on sports or anything else, but if I did, my money would be on Wembanyama’s return to the NBA next season following successful recovery from his deep vein thrombosis. And considering the Spurs’ actions, I’m confident that he won’t be wearing another team’s uniform.
