The Spurs stumbled through most of Opening Night, but the same tenacity which won them 15 championships erased a 14-PT advantage by the Hornets, sporting their generational talent, Victor Wembenyama (11 points, 4/11 FG%), and LaMelo Ball (25 points). Fred VanVleet was the spark plug for the Spurs, scorching hot from 3PT distance with 11 shots tickling the twine, totaling 37 points on the night.
Brandon Ingram scored 24 points, and Dejounte Murray had some decibel-shattering dunks in transition, coming up one assist shy of a triple-double with 25 points & 10 rebounds.
As the Hornets fought back to keep the crowd nervous to start the 4th Quarter, Gordon Hayward made his arrival for the silver-and-black as every other Spur’s unique talents went on display. “It was a great team win. It’s a long season, so we’re still trying to incorporate the new guys on the team and establish a defensive identity akin to how we’ve been so successful in years past. They pulled it out,” Coach Popovich spoke highly of the new-look second unit.
