Spurs fans should brace themselves for an annoying schedule reality

The NBA is ready to begin rolling out the new schedule for the 2026-27 season this week. Starting tomorrow, Tuesday, August 11, games will trickle out until the eventual full reveal, which, if I had to guess, would be on Thursday.

Fans haven't seen the Spurs play basketball in almost two months, but the end of the offseason will be here before we know it. There's a ton to be excited for with San Antonio being a bona fide contender now, but there will be some negatives in the schedule, too.

Let's get ahead of the potential angst by accepting what we already know is coming.

The Spurs will be surrendering up to four home games

The Silver and Black have developed a tradition of playing a couple of "home games" in Austin every year. The move has been categorized as a way to increase the fan base by sharing some experiences with San Antonio's close neighbor to the north.

It's been a successful endeavor, and while some haven't been supportive of taking the team away from the Frost Bank Center at all, two games was a fairly small number. However, the number of home-away-from-home occurrences continues to increase. In July, the Spurs received permission to play up to four games away from the FBC in each of the next two seasons.

San Antonio is set to play the New Orleans Pelicans in both Paris and Manchester. One of those matchups will be considered "home" for the Silver and Black. The other two we know about will be the Austin games. The fourth is yet to be disclosed, and to be fair, there's no guarantee they'll use the fourth slot.

However, they only requested three slots two seasons ago under similar circumstances. The Spurs played two games in France during the 2024-25 campaign but were only considered "home" for one of them. The two additional slots were again used for Austin appearances. So, why ask for four this time if they don't plan on using all four?

There's always a chance they could want to use the Alamodome again, but it could just as easily be in Mexico City or back at the Moody Center. The Austin events have been profitable. It's not hard to imagine the franchise adding one more game there.

The Spurs need to stop taking home games for granted

The Spurs are the only team in the league that takes away multiple home games from their fans on a yearly basis. The SA faithful didn't push back much when it was only two inconveniences, but how far will the organization take this? How many games are enough? 5? 10?

You can keep the "expand the fan base" argument. I don't buy it. The Silver and Black have never lacked a strong and supportive community. With Victor Wembanyama and the Slash Bros. in uniform, they'll naturally attract more fans without the extracurricular behavior from the organization.

The Spurs don't need to prove that these other markets have value at the expense of the people who already support the team in San Antonio.

In any single season, they need to either axe the international games or suspend the Austin appearances. Having both in one year alienates the local fans who are supposed to be enjoying the full benefits of living in an NBA city.

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