Victor Wembanyama has never been interested in pretending rivalries are something the league can simply declare. To him, they have to grow out of real friction: long memories, loud buildings and enough edge to make the game feel different from the opening tip. That’s why the Spurs’ season opener against Oklahoma City jumps off the page.
San Antonio opens Oct. 20 at 8:30 p.m. Central against the Thunder at Frost Bank Center, bringing last season’s seven-game Western Conference Finals showdown right back into the spotlight on Opening Night.
It’s also Oklahoma City’s only scheduled trip to San Antonio. The other two meetings come Feb. 11 and March 14 at Paycom Center, and all three games will be nationally televised.
The Spurs will be rested for the opener and won’t play again until hosting Houston three nights later at Moody Center, giving fans an immediate chance to welcome back the reigning Western Conference champions.
There’s also a Halloween wrinkle worth circling. On Oct. 31 at 7 p.m.
Central, the Spurs host Minnesota at Frost Bank Center in what will be LaMelo Ball’s first game in San Antonio since joining Anthony Edwards in a Timberwolves uniform. It’s the sixth game on San Antonio’s schedule and the first of four meetings with Minnesota.
The Spurs will have two full days off after playing at Utah on Oct. 28, then won’t take the floor again until hosting the Jazz on Nov. 2, so the holiday matchup lands neatly outside any back-to-back pressure. That gives Wembanyama, Ball and Edwards a clean stage.
Christmas Day brings something even bigger. The Spurs head back to Madison Square Garden to face the reigning champion New York Knicks at 11 a.m.
Central on ABC in their first rematch of the NBA Finals. It closes a seven-game road trip that starts Dec. 15 and runs through Cleveland, Toronto, Chicago, New Orleans, Milwaukee and Brooklyn before ending in Manhattan.
San Antonio will play the Nets on Dec. 23, then get Christmas Eve off before stepping into the building where its championship chase ended. Harrison Barnes put the occasion plainly last season: “As a basketball player, to be able to play on Christmas Day is special,” Spurs forward Harrison Barnes said last season.
“Growing up as a kid, watching those games on TV, that was a great opportunity. It’s just an honor and a privilege to be able to do that.”
The calendar also sets up two different first looks at a pair of No. 1 picks. On New Year’s Day, Wembanyama and Washington Wizards rookie A.J.
Dybantsa will meet for the first time, with tipoff set for 4 p.m. Central in Washington.
That game comes on the second night of a back-to-back for San Antonio after an afternoon trip to Charlotte on New Year’s Eve. Dybantsa will then make his first visit to Frost Bank Center on March 9 at 7 p.m.
Central, between home games against New York and Philadelphia, with a day off on either side.
Then comes another headline name, and another familiar one. LeBron James, now entering Year 24 as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers, returns to San Antonio on March 11 at 6:30 p.m.
Central for a nationally televised Prime game. It’s the third straight home game for the Spurs after New York on March 7 and Washington on March 9, and they’ll have a day off between each one.
The teams meet again 10 days later in Philadelphia, with NBC carrying the March 21 rematch. James has visited San Antonio many times before, but this one adds a fresh layer to his latest meeting with Wembanyama - and gives Philadelphia’s only trip to Frost Bank Center real weight on the Spurs’ schedule.
In Other News...
Spurs Arena Plan Now Hinges On A San Antonio Funding Fight
San Antonios push for a new Spurs arena has entered a more complicated phase, with the project now tied to a city budget debate as much as a sports one. City council had already approved $489 million in municipal bond funding, but the citys projected deficit has reopened the question of how that money should be handled and how much public backing still exists for the plan.
Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones is now seeking to have residents reauthorize the citys share of arena funding on the November ballot, and the council is scheduled to vote on whether to put the matter in front of voters. Even if that does not happen, the process is not over, because residents would still have to cast another vote to issue city bonds for the first phase of construction, leaving the arena effort caught between political timing and a required public test. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Rookie Carter Bryant Faced A Brutal Early Test Behind The Scenes
Brian Wright used the 14th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft on Carter Bryant, and the Spurs did not ease their rookie in gently once practice began. Early on, Bryant had to deal with the kind of behind-the-scenes assignment that can expose a young player fast, as he learned the pace, physicality and details that come with defending established NBA talent in a Spurs gym.
The trial-by-fire helped Bryant settle in as the season went on, and his growth showed up when the games mattered most. By the playoffs, he had carved out a real role off the bench, giving San Antonio useful minutes and spacing while continuing to benefit from the lessons he picked up against teammates in practice. [Read more 🡒]
Spurs Face One Big Question Behind Their Offseason Momentum
The Spurs spent the offseason adding more layers to a roster that already had promise, bringing in Jayden Quaintance and Tarris Reed through the draft, signing Tobias Harris and keeping Julian Champagnie and Harrison Barnes in the fold. On paper, it looks like the kind of steady summer that can help a young team build on momentum, especially with Victor Wembanyama already giving San Antonio a defensive backbone few teams can match.
The bigger question now sits on the sideline, where the staff looks different even as the roster grows deeper. Sean Sweeney, who played a major role in sharpening that defense, is gone after taking a head coaching job in Orlando, leaving Billy Donovan to sort out how much of last seasons identity can carry over without him. For a Spurs team trying to turn offseason progress into a real step forward, that coaching change may matter as much as any addition. [Read more 🡒]