Victor Wembanyama, shown here playing in an exhibition game in Las Vegas on Oct. 6, is expected to give a huge boost to both the on-court and financial fortunes of the San Antonio Spurs. The team won the rights to the 19-year-old Wembanyama thanks to a favorable roll of the ping-pong balls in the NBA draft lottery.For several years, the Spurs have been looking for ways to expand their fan base and market power beyond San Antonio — to Austin, the Rio Grande Valley, even Mexico.
Wembanyana won't even have to be the second coming of LeBron James for the Spurs to continue cashing in. It's a plan that assumes the Spurs can break out of its small-market straitjacket without actually leaving San Antonio, although that possibility can't be ruled out entirely.The last time the Spurs won the NBA championship, the team's fifth, was in 2014. That year, Forbes valued the franchise at $660 million, based on its market size, revenue, income, stadium deals and the worth of its brand.
"We are working to reach our fans across the region — Mexico to Austin and all points in between — with the belief that San Antonio is uniquely positioned culturally, geographically and financially to build this mega-region," a Spurs official told me."Austin plus Corpus plus Laredo plus the Valley equals three million Spurs fans, not to mention Mexico."