The San Antonio Spurs didn’t get to pick the opponent, but they did get the setting they wanted.
With Austin already bracing for a massive sports weekend in late October - Formula 1’s United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas on Oct. 25 and Texas football hosting Ole Miss at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium on Oct. 24 - the NBA added another layer to the scene by scheduling the Spurs against the Houston Rockets at Moody Center on Friday, Oct. 23 at 8:30 p.m. Central on Prime Video.
That matchup gives Austin a stand-alone Spurs game during one of the city’s busiest stretches of the year, and it also brings ex-Longhorn Kevin Durant back to his college town for the second time since February 2025. Durant, now entering his 19th season, was in Austin the last time the Suns played the Spurs there, on the same day Victor Wembanyama received his season-ending deep vein thrombosis diagnosis.
This time, both players are healthy, and the Spurs are hoping the buzz translates into another packed building. The team has sold out every game it has played at Moody Center since debuting there in 2023.
Spurs Sports & Entertainment SVP of Strategic Growth Brandon James said the league’s decision to place Houston in Austin says something about how the NBA views the Spurs’ broader reach.
“The NBA is very particular about not letting teams influence opponents and scheduling," James told Spurs On SI over a phone call, "but ... I think given the opponent that we got, it is validation that the NBA is on board with our global growth efforts. It sees the value of our presence here.”
For James, the timing made the game an obvious fit.
"Every eyeball in sports is going to be on Austin," James said. "We felt that we should be part of that. We want our fans to see our brand in appealing ways ... it just made sense."
The October date also helps explain why the Spurs pushed for a third Moody Center game this season. That became possible after Bexar County commissioners approved an amendment to the team’s non-relocation agreement in July, giving the Spurs permission to stage as many as four games away from Frost Bank Center in 2026-27 and 2027-28.
The two Austin games that usually split up San Antonio’s annual Rodeo Road Trip are still on the schedule for February. The Spurs will host the Memphis Grizzlies on Feb. 26 and the Denver Nuggets on Feb.
- The fourth “home” game will come on Jan. 14 against the New Orleans Pelicans in Paris as part of the NBA’s ongoing global expansion.
Austin has become more than just a convenient alternate site for the Spurs. Wembanyama has embraced the city, and so have his teammates, with James saying that connection has helped speed up the team’s growth in Central Texas.
"Austin is super cool," Wembanyama said on his third trip. "For me, San Antonio, they’re my people, but Austin, they’re my people, as well. They welcome us and show much love."
Stephon Castle echoed that feeling with a shorter take on the Spurs’ presence there.
“It’s obviously not a San Antonio home game, but we’ve still got a lot of fans out here. No matter where we play, we’ll always have a little bit of energy.”
The organization has spent the past three years building that footprint in ways that go beyond the games themselves. The Spurs have held activations, meet and greets and community efforts during what they call “Spurs Week” in the days before the pair of February games.
Last November, they became the first NBA team to land naming rights for a half marathon, and the second Spurs Austin International Half is set for Jan. 17 - the same day the Spurs face the Pelicans in Manchester.
James said the payoff has been clearer since 2023, with the team finding it easier to connect with fans outside San Antonio.
“Fans are really seeing that we're coming here and being authentic to who we are," James said of the Spurs' Austin push. "We spent so long building these relationships ... and telling the story of our purpose here and ... fans are telling the story for us now, it seems like like.”
Even with the added attention and the push beyond San Antonio, James was firm that the Austin strategy isn’t a relocation story.
“We are absolutely committed to San Antonio," James said to conclude the interview. "We're also committed to leveraging our brand and reaching our audiences wherever they may be.
Austin is absolutely a part of our market. Both things can be true.”
In Other News...
Spurs' Huge Summer Now Has A Franchise Fight Looming
The Spurs push for a new downtown arena hit a major snag this week when the San Antonio City Council rejected a move to put the citys proposed contribution before voters. The county had already approved public funding for the project, but the councils 5-6 decision left the municipal side of the financing plan in a more uncertain place, even as the team continues to press ahead with a proposal that has become central to its long-term future.
RC Buford has backed moving forward, while Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones has taken the opposite view and argued for giving residents a bigger say in the process. The arena plan is built around a public-private split that would have the Spurs cover a major share of the project, but the political fight around the citys role now threatens to overshadow what had been a huge summer for the franchise. [Read more 🡒]
Wembanyamas Latest Jokic Battles Show What Spurs Fans Still Need To See
Victor Wembanyamas latest run-ins with Nikola Jokic offered another reminder of why Spurs fans keep circling these meetings on the calendar. The two met in a two-game exhibition series tied to preparations for the FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers, with Serbia taking the first game and France answering in the second. Jokic was productive in both, while Wembanyama looked sharper the second time around, a familiar arc for a young player still trying to measure himself against one of the games most complete big men.
Wembanyama has already made clear that those battles matter to him, and hell get another chance to carry the lessons forward when he rejoins France for upcoming qualifier games. For San Antonio, the appeal is obvious: every possession against Jokic offers a preview of the reads, patience and physical control Wembanyama still has to keep adding. Frances next tests are coming soon, and the Spurs will have plenty of reason to watch how their franchise centerpiece handles the next step. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs May Be West Favorites But One Finals Problem Is Obvious
The Spurs head into the 2026-27 season looking like the Wests team to beat, but the path from favorite to champion still runs through an East that has enough different problems to make any Finals matchup uncomfortable. Toronto, Boston and New York all sit in that conversation for different reasons, with the Raptors intriguing as a potential defensive nuisance, the Celtics still built around a style that can stress an opponent possession by possession, and the Knicks looming as a rematch possibility after the last Finals.
Torontos ceiling gets even more serious if its front-office plans come together, while Bostons edge is less about simple name value than the way its perimeter game and coaching structure can keep pressure on a defense for an entire series. New York, meanwhile, brings the kind of familiarity that can cut both ways in a Finals rematch. For San Antonio, the bigger point is clear enough: being the West favorite is one thing, but the Spurs would still have to solve an East that offers several different kinds of trouble. [Read more 🡒]