SAN ANTONIO — It was never about Victor Wembanyama ducking reporters.When the San Antonio Spurs big man chose to walk away from the cameras and microphones after his terrible Game 5 showing on Tuesday night, with his teammates left to discuss how they’d blown a chance to take the lead against the Oklahoma City Thunder at home in these Western Conference finals, the widespread criticism that came his way was about the message he sent by choosing silence. It was one vanishing act begetting another, with Wembanyama setting the stage for a brutal offseason to come if he hadn’t found a way to deliver when the spotlight returned with the season on the line two days later. And then, with the conversation surrounding the 22-year-old taking such a negative turn in the two days between games, he turned in a special performance that spoke volumes about his moxie.Wembanyama, who was so underwhelming two nights before that there was widespread speculation about fatigue getting the best of him at this juncture of the postseason, finished with 28 points (10-of-21 shooting; 4-of-9 from three), 10 rebounds, three blocks, two steals, two assists and a plus-13 mark in his 28 minutes of the 118-91 win. Crisis averted. Season saved. The future face of the NBA, this young phenom who has a chance to shock the basketball world by sending the defending champs home early in Game 7 on Saturday, said everything he needed to say with his play.With his chest, as the kids say. And truth be told, it’s what his coaches and teammates said about him afterward that was more enlightening than anything that came from the superstar subject himself.“Just a desire to meet the moment,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson explained when asked about Wembanyama’s response. “He’s not always perfect, and we’ve got to help him at times. Obviously, he’s 22 years old, but his passion and desire for being right where he is and at the forefront of it all, and to take the responsibility and the role and the burden of what he does, I don’t know what else to say.“He is comfortable with that, regardless of the outcome and what that may look like. And I think that’s maybe his biggest growth this year (is) not waiting for it to be perfect, (or) necessarily to know what to do all the time, but (to) attack the moment and have the right approach and live with the results.”Those closest to him say he didn’t talk out of sheer frustration. He let himself down in Game 5, and decided to skirt the media obligations as a way of focusing on the monumental task that was coming next.At the risk of being accused of being too soft on Wembanyama — and yes, those accusations are flying at the media and the NBA these days — it should not be overlooked that he’s so ahead of schedule. He’s still three years away from being able to rent a car, yet now has this all-or-nothing chance to reach his first finals at the same age as LeBron James back in 2007, when his Cleveland Cavaliers were swept by San Antonio.Michael Jordan didn’t get there until he was 28, when his Chicago Bulls beat the Los Angeles Lakers in five games. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was 24 when, as Lew Alcindor, his Milwaukee Bucks swept the Baltimore Bullets. Kobe Bryant was 21 when his Lakers beat the Indiana Pacers in six games. Wilt Chamberlain was 27 when his San Francisco Warriors lost to the Boston Celtics in five games. Bill Russell was 23 when, as a rookie, he led Boston to a seven-game win against the St. Louis Hawks. Jerry West was 24 when his Lakers lost to Boston in seven games. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder’s back-to-back MVP who Wembanyama wants to dethrone as the game’s best player, made his first finals appearance and won his first title last season at the age of 26.This is the company Wembanyama is trying to keep.Wembanyama scored 28 points in Thursday night’s win over the Thunder. (Ronald Cortes / Getty Images)Regardless of whether the Spurs go on to win it all, there’s a certain statement that comes with carrying a team to the finals stage in the first few years of one’s career. Wembanyama has said time and again that he doesn’t care about San Antonio’s lack of experience, how the fact that this is his first postseason should have no bearing on how far he’s able to take his group. But that’s a delusional outlook.