Most of the attention after San Antonio's Game 4 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, 103-82, focused on Mitch Johnson's defensive adjustment: rather than sending ארשפד at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Spurs stayed attached to shooters on the arc, were disciplined with help, and held the reigning champs to 6-of-33 from three. But there's another difference from the two games the Thunder won that deserves equal attention: Victor Wembanyama's offensive assertiveness.

Wembanyama took 22 shots in 33 minutes and scored 33 points on 50% shooting - a sharp Progression from Games 2 and 3, where he attempted just 15 and 16 shots, respectively. In Game 1, he took 25 shots, but the game went to double overtime, with Wembanyama playing 49 minutes. His playoff average stands at 14.9 attempts per game in 31.7 minutes. In the regular season, he averaged 16.9 attempts in 29.1 minutes. The numbers leave no room for doubt - Game 4 was an unusually assertive offensive outing for the Frenchman.

What made Game 4 significant, more than the volume, was the role Wembanyama occupied within San Antonio's halfcourt offense. We've written before about the odd shape of the Spurs' attack - one where Wembanyama was never really the hub, but rather a bonus weapon layered on top of a system built around spacing and the creation ability of De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper. Strange as it sounds, Wembanyama had been an elite add-on to that offense rather than its center of gravity - setting ball screens, catching lobs in transition, drilling threes in spot-up situations, or getting isolated off a timeout play.

In Game 4, it was clear from the opening possession that Wemby was Option 1. That came through in two specific tools. First: isolation sets. On San Antonio's very first offensive possession - see the video at 0:00 - the Spurs ran an Iverson cut action that served as misdirection into a flare screen for Wembanyama, then cleared out. He airballed the shot, but the Spurs grabbed the offensive rebound, and he immediately hit a three. Both elements - an isolation design drawn up from the bench and his willingness to attack - set the tone immediately. Throughout the game, the Spurs continued feeding him in iso situations: at the extended elbow in transition, off flare screens, in a wide pin-down action, and more.

Watch - Wemby Iso plays in game number 4 

But the most important element, to me, was Wembanyama's assertiveness as a roll man in pick-and-roll, and the guards' commitment to finding him there. One example from the video (0:00): the Spurs run their Elbow 45 action, in which the ball handler receives two optional screens near half-court. After the first screen from Vassell, Castle reads that he has no advantage - so Wembanyama sets a wing pick-and-roll toward the middle, and Castle finds him with an alley-oop. Again and again, he caught the ball in those situations where he was essentially unstoppable. Even when he misses, he usually corrects it himself at the rim.

Watch - Wemby Roll man plays in game 4

The shift in Wembanyama's shot diet in the playoffs is also evident in his Synergy profile: in the postseason, his most common sources of offense are as a pick-and-roll roll man (15.6%) and in isolation (13.5%). In the regular season, those numbers were just 9.1% as a roll man and 11.6% in isolation.

 If this assertiveness carries forward, it would represent a genuine new phase in his development - becoming a true focal point, not just an elite complement. And it would make life significantly harder for the Oklahoma City Thunder.