San Antonio Spurs exploring option of downtown arena to keep Wemby on board

The team’s consideration of new arena site is line with the prediction of University of Texas at San Antonio sports marketing professor Ricard Jensen, who told the Current the arrival of French phenom Victor Wembanyama would fuel interest in a new area.

“If you have a downtown stadium that certainly accentuates the downtown skyline, brings people downtown and really builds a connection between a sports franchise and a downtown area,” Jensen said.

Jensen added that replacing the 21-year-old AT&T Center, among the oldest arenas in the NBA, might also entice Wembanyama to stay in San Antonio once his contract ends in 2027.

The Spurs’ lease on the East Side arena expires in 2032.

The owners of the Spurs and Minor League Baseball’s San Antonio Missions are weighing some sort of partnership in a downtown sports and entertainment district, the Express-News reports, citing a person knowledgeable about both teams.

“I think they’re doing some preliminary research to see if it would make sense,” Eddie Aldrete, former chairman of the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, told the daily. “They wouldn’t want to start the conversation if the math doesn’t add up.”

Although the Spurs and Missions are potentially looking at new facilities, it remains to see whether San Antonio taxpayers have the appetite to front money for their development. Stay tuned.

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This article appears in Jul 12-25, 2023.