The San Antonio Spurs and Me: A Love Story

It occurred to me Tuesday night during Game 3 of the NBA finals that I have seen three San Antonio Spurs games in San Antonio, both at the Alamodome and at the Spurs' current home, the AT&T Center.

I guess I'd forgotten that.

It's not like I take vacation time and my money to fly to Texas to watch pro basketball. Please. Like I'd vacation in Texas.

But seriously, folks, sports are off my vacation radar unless it's spending 10 minutes in a betting parlor in Ireland while my wife checks out a nearby shop or two. She pulled me out of one of those places last summer, embarrassed and annoyed that I was openly cheering for a horse while the other customers sat quietly.

Ugly American, indeed.

Each of the three times I saw a Spurs game, I was in town to cover an Alamo Bowl. Iowa has been to a lot of Alamo Bowls. I'll bet I've covered more Alamo Bowls than any sportswriter who isn't from San Antonio. There's something for the obituary.

I chose going to a Spurs game over walking around on the Riverwalk with other tourists and hearing that the Riverwalk is great. It's a man-made canal lined with a bunch of bars and restaurants. It probably won't replace the Great Pyramid at Giza as one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

But I've got nothing against San Antonio. Nice people, good Mexican food. I love the fact a team that is two wins from its fifth NBA title in 14 years is the only major-league sports team in its own town.

In 1993, the Alamo Bowl and former Iowa basketball player Acie Earl were both rookies. Iowa got crushed by California in the first Alamo Bowl, which is about to be a big-deal game next year when it gets the top non-College Football Playoff teams from the Big 12 and Pac-12 conferences.

Earl was the first-round draft pick of the Boston Celtics in '93. His team was in San Antonio to play the Spurs, and I checked it out.

David Robinson, playing opposite Earl in the paint, scored 46 points and blocked five shots. San Antonio won, 99-85.

"Only a few players in this league have his size and skills," Earl said afterward. "Early on I did all right against him, but when I came in later he was in a rhythm. Almost everything he did was good. He was in that rhythm, in that zone."

Robinson had a few nights like that. Four months after that game, he scored 71 points against the Los Angeles Clippers. By the time his career he was done, he had two NBA championship rings. He is, of course, in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Eight years later, I went back to the Alamodome for a Spurs game a couple nights before an Alamo Bowl. I saw the Dallas Mavericks defeat the Spurs in overtime, 126-123. It was a wonderful game. Tony Parker, then a relative kid, tried to use a towel to swat a bat that was flying around the stadium and too close to the arena floor for comfort.

Tim Duncan, then a relative kid, scored 53 points.

Steve Nash, then a relative kid, made a 3-pointer with 0.6 seconds left in overtime for the game-winner.

I had a press pass. I found myself seated next to Mark Cuban, the Mavs' billionaire owner. He was a hoot.

"Think about it, Timmy Duncan!" he bellowed as Duncan was at the foul line in the fourth quarter. "Think about it, baby!"

Duncan swished both free throws. He made all 15 of his attempts from the line.

"You're killing us, Courtney," Cuban screamed at official Courtney Kirkland. It didn't prove to be true. The owner charged onto the court after the game to hug his players after their win.

I didn't speak with Cuban at the game. He didn't send off a vibe that he wanted to chitchat with a sportswriter. But after I went back to my hotel, on a whim I shot him an email to ask him what it was about owning the Mavericks that was so meaningful to him. To my surprise, he replied early the next morning.

"I've been a basketball junkie as long as I could remember and I'm smart enough to realize I'm the luckiest guy in the world and living a dream," he wrote.

"What makes it particularly satisfying is knowing that peoples' perception of the NBA is so wrong. So many people think those guys don't work hard at their jobs. They do.

"Watching the guys practice, the coaches prepare, the fans get excited, and then seeing it all come together is an amazing experience. Add to that all the strategy in terms of how to build a team, and to me, it couldn't get more exciting."

By the way, I liked the Riverwalk a lot more than Cuban.

The last time I saw a Spurs game was before Iowa's most-recent Alamo Bowl, in December 2006. The Milwaukee Bucks, who went 28-54 that season, beat the Spurs of Duncan and Parker, 114-107.  Six months later, San Antonio won its third NBA championship.

I like the NBA playoffs and I like the Spurs. You might not. It's a big-enough world for all of us to have things we enjoy.