\u201cWe now know they have the best player in the league, and they\u2019re going to have to pay a maximum salary,\u201d Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai said Wednesday. \u201cThey\u2019re going to have to have a city that is going to show full commitment, otherwise that star player could say I\u2019m leaving, because that star player can command whatever he wants.\u201d<\/p>\n
Four years ago, San Antonio fans freaked out when the team asked Bexar County Commissioners<\/a> for permission to play one of its home games in Austin \u2014 perceived by many as a signal the Spurs might consider moving to another city.<\/p>\n Now the Spurs are on track to get a new $1.3 billion downtown arena<\/a> that will extend their non-relocation agreement until 2062. But it won\u2019t be ready for at least five more years<\/a>, and the team has already said it finds the existing Eastside arena to be a woefully inadequate fan experience.<\/p>\n After many reassurances about the teams\u2019 commitment to stay in San Antonio, Bexar County leaders went along with<\/a> the team\u2019s 2022 request to play a game in Austin \u2014 plus a second game in Mexico City \u2014 to help the Spurs grow their business.<\/p>\n That agreement has since been amended<\/a> to allow two games in Austin during the past two seasons, and Sakai said Wednesday that he\u2019s open to their latest request for even more.<\/p>\n According to the July 7 agenda<\/a> for the Bexar County Commissioners Court, the Spurs are asking to play four regular-season home games outside of the Frost Bank Center during each of the 2026-2027 and 2027-2028 NBA seasons.<\/p>\n \u201cOver the years, the non-relocation agreement has been amended on several occasions,\u201d the document says. \u201cThe San Antonio Spurs have now requested an additional amendment \u2026 to expand that previously approved flexibility.\u201d<\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t specify where the game would be played, but the Spurs are already scheduled to play two games against the Pelicans in France in January 2027.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re going to look and make sure that we\u2019re not losing any money because we\u2019re allowing that,\u201d Sakai said. \u201cThe Spurs will come in and give us their explanation and justifications, and they may get some comments about, \u2018Well, what about the loss of revenue of those home games?’\u201d<\/p>\n Amber Esparza <\/p>\n \/<\/p>\n San Antonio Report <\/p>\n Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai speaks during a County Budget Town Hall in Precinct 1 at the Harlandale Community Center on June 1, 2026. <\/p>\n The county owns the Frost Bank Center, where the Spurs currently have an agreement to play their home games \u2014 42 per season \u2014 through 2032.<\/p>\n In a statement on Saturday, Spurs spokeswoman Liberty Swift said, \u201cThe Spurs will continue to play the same number of regular-season home games each year. What the amendment does is provide flexibility to play a limited number of those existing home games in locations outside Frost Bank Center. That flexibility supports our longstanding strategy of connecting with Spurs fans across our region, including in Austin, while also allowing us to participate in select NBA international games.\u201d<\/p>\n Given the money the recently playoff games brought into the community, however, Sakai said their request for more flexibility sounded reasonable enough.<\/p>\n \u201cLook at the windfall that the county and the city got from the Spurs, and the goodwill, and the international exposure,\u201d he said in an interview. \u201cI mean, look at all the people that came here.\u201d<\/p>\n Sakai\u2019s approach is a stark contrast to Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones<\/a>, who has been using the playoff run to try to negotiate more money from the team and its billionaire investors in exchange for the city\u2019s portion of the new arena deal.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we have to cheer hard for the team, and be cognizant of [the fact that] they will very likely be champions \u2014 I\u2019m knocking on wood \u2014 and the day afterwards, we will still have a $131 million budget gap going into [fiscal year] 2028,\u201d Jones said in an interview just before the Spurs\u2019 crushing defeat in Game 4<\/a> against the Knicks.<\/p>\n County revenue is also down this year and tough spending decisions are around the corner<\/a>.<\/p>\n As Sakai\u2019s budget town hall at the Harlandale Civic Center on Wednesday night, he drew several questions about the wisdom of the county\u2019s business relationship with the Spurs, including putting $311 million of its venue tax dollars<\/a> into the team\u2019s new arena.<\/p>\n Since moving into the Frost Bank Center, the county never received any money from the 20% profit-sharing agreement the Spurs agreed to<\/a> when it was built, said Cindy Munch, a Greater Harmony Hills resident.<\/p>\n Past county leaders also forgave a $5 million debt the San Antonio Spurs LLC owed the county when it failed to bring a Major League Soccer team to San Antonio several years ago.<\/p>\n \u201cThey already got to drive a profit off the rent advantages at the Frost Bank Center,\u201d Munch said. \u201cIt\u2019s a very, very good time for the Spurs. They have much wealth here.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Bexar](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1783194747_303_.jpeg\"\/)
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