Without real sporting ambitions this season, the Spurs have decided to celebrate the 50th season in franchise history in San Antonio with 4 home games played outside the AT&T Center, their usual venue. The first took place on December 17 in Mexico City against the Heat. The second took place at the Alamodome in San Antonio against the Warriors on January 13, a meeting that broke the attendance record for an NBA game with 68,323 spectators combined.
Finally, the last two will take place in Austin, Texas, not far from San Antonio. The first will take place tonight against the Blazers (2 a.m.), the second will take place on Saturday evening at 10 p.m. against the Wolves. Two meetings which will be the last two home games of the franchise this season. A destination not very far away, which is very popular with Gregg Popovich.
“It’s a great sporting city. They like competitive teams” said the Spurs manager. “Even though we’re in the development phase, it’s important for us to play in different venues for these guys to be successful. In general, it’s just to see the competitiveness of the team, the personality of the players..
Games in Austin scheduled every year
In a press conference, Gregg Popovich announced that it was not just an experiment, but a habit that will have to be taken, because the Spurs now plan to play regular season games in Austin every year. .
“In the end, the Spurs organization simply wants to expand its territory” he explained. “We live in this area, from the Mexican border to here, and we would like to extend the ties we have with Spurs to another area, and for that we have to make the effort to be seen, to come here and to play a few matches. I think that’s what we will do every year. I don’t think so, I know it, and this is the start of this new experience.”.
Although it is the most successful franchise in Texas, San Antonio suffers from a real lack of popularity and attractiveness compared to its regional competitors, Houston and Dallas. The Rockets and Mavericks are much more attractive to superstars and sponsors. By moving to the state capital, the Spurs have therefore decided to activate a new lever to change the situation, even if they start from very far away.
“We are a third zone market” recognizes Spurs general manager RC Buford. “By positioning ourselves better in this region, we have a chance to become a potentially more powerful market”.
