San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
Wolffwants team to rethink plan for fans
Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said Saturday he has “encouraged” Spurs officials to “hold off for a while” on letting fans return to the county-owned AT&T Center for games.
The Spurs announced Dec. 4 they were targeting Friday’s New Year’s Day game against the Los Angeles Lakers as the day they would “begin welcoming fans back to the AT&T Center in a limited capacity” pending the “status of public health data and guidelines” for the coronavirus pandemic.
But the county’s top official said he cautioned the Spurs against going forward with that plan based on his belief that the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District will receive bad news this week about the number of new local COVID-19 cases.
“I don’t have the up-to-date data yet because we did not do testing yesterday or the day before, but I will have the up-to-date data Monday, and I told them I didn’t think it would be good,” Wolff said. “It’s still a dangerous time. I might be wrong, but based on what we have seen happening, I don’t think it is going to be good.”
A Spurs spokesman said club officials had no comment.
Wolff said he delivered a similar message to the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, which is moving next year from the AT&T Center to the smaller Freeman Coliseum next door because overall attendance will be limited to about 120,000. That number is less than 10 percent of last year’s turnout of 1.5 million.
“But the rodeo is not until Feb. 11, so they have time to where hopefully it will get better,” Wolff said.
The Spurs hosted Toronto on Saturday night in their first regular season home game at the AT&T Center since they beat Dallas on March 10. Saturday’s game came as the NBA continued to adjust to playing in a raging pandemic outside of the bubble that protected the league so well during seeding games and postseason play this past summer in Orlando, Fla.
It was announced Saturday that a player the Spurs faced Wednesday in Memphis has been sidelined in accordance with the league’s “health and safety” protocols.
De’ Anthony Melton played 24 minutes against the Spurs in the season opener. The Grizzlies did not say if Melton is isolating due to a positive COVID-19 test or contact tracing, the Memphis Commerical Appeal reported.
In a Zoom conference with the
media before Saturday’s game, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich discussed the decision to play the home opener without any fans.
“We wish every one of them was there, packed to the gills, but you can’t do it. It’s just not safe,” Popovich said.
Spurs guard LonnieWalker encouraged fans to be patient.
“Wemiss you guys, we love you guys, and we can’t wait,” Walker said. “But for the most part, stay patient, stay healthy, keep those masks on, so we can hopefully sooner rather than later have everyone in the arena.”
Officials issued repeated warnings
this month that gatherings over Christmas and New Year’s could have deadly consequences for Bexar County. Since Thanksgiving, coronavirus cases in San Antonio have peaked, with another 1,717 new cases reported Tuesday and 1,629 reportedWednesday. That brought the county’s total since the start of the pandemic to 106,793 cases.
More than 30 percent of those cases have been reported since the start of December, officials said. The city also reported eight new virus-related deathsWednesday, raising Bexar County’s total to 1,479.
No setbacks forWhite in rehab on left toe
Popovich offered a positive report when asked how guard Derrick White is progressing in his rehab from offseason surgery on his left toe.
“He’s progressing very well,” Popovich said. “We don’t have an exact date on a return, but it’ll be soon.”
White worked out on the court before the game. He remains sidelined along with guard QuinndaryWeatherspoon, who is recovering from offseason surgery on his left knee.
Pop has different view on tough guy Baynes
Raptors big man Aron Baynes is known for his hard-nosed style, but Popovich said there’s a softer side to the New Zealand native.
“He’s a wonderful human being,” Popovich said. “Tough nut on the court. He gets after it. Takes no prisoners. He’s there to win. And off the court, he’s a sweetie pie.”
Baynes opened his NBA career with a three-season stint with the Spurs that began in 2012 and included helping the team win a league title in 2014.