This one was in draft mode on www.thstatmanspeaks.com with a date of 04/26/2021.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS
I worked for the San Antonio Spurs from October of 1999 through May of 2002 in the Guest Services department. I worked every home regular and playoff game at the Alamodome during that timeframe. I still have most of the ID’s that I wore around my neck form my tenure. I should share those in Instagram. Wait, I think I did a long time ago. But I don’t feel like going back and looking, it will be easier to get them out and snap a pic and share it. Let’s do that this weekend. Alexa, remind me at 9am on Saturday to take a picture of Spurs ID’s.
Before that, I was already a fan of the Spurs. I watched a lot of losing seasons in the 90’s. I had a poster of one of those teams and they were standing around Shamu from Sea World of Texas. I never imagined that they would eventually be NBA Champions 5 times!
One of those players from the early 90’s has an ex-wife and even though she worked in another department at Chase Bank when I worked there, I knew of her and at one point, she sat in front of me. She talked a lot about her kids, and I was a great listener. I won’t name names.
I loved it when somebody in my immediate family would bring me autographs of players; especially if they played for the Spurs. I have quite a collection. My oldest Spurs autograph is from June 20, 1991, and it’s Avery Johnson. How do I know certain that date? Well, his autograph is on a ticket stub from a San Antonio Missions (they were a AA minor league baseball team affiliated with the LA Dodgers) game. I think that particular game was a game in which professional LA Dodger baseball player, Orel Hershiser, pitched in one of his rehab starts after an injury. That could be why Avery was at the game!
Another Spurs autograph that I have is Sam Mack. I was with my family celebrating my birthday at a Chinse restaurant and I recognized him immediately. I was to shy to ask him for his autograph, but my dad wasn’t and even told him it was my birthday. Well, not only did he give me his autograph, but he also gave me his home phone number and told us to reach out to him as he was going to try to get us tickets to the next Spurs home game. He was only able to get us 1 ticket and was I not feeling well for that game, but well enough to drive to a park and ride and catch a bus to the arena. I sat behind the basket with the wife’s and girlfriends of the team as well as the person who sang the National Anthem. What an awesome gesture on his part and I think it was my 16th birthday (1993) and quite possibly the last game in Hemisphere Arena. I wish I had that ticket stub!
In addition to Sam Mack and Avery Johnson autographs, I also have these former Spurs coaches and players: Will Perdue, Larry Brown, Terry Cummings, Paul Pressey, Howard Eisley, Alvin Robertson, Chuck Person, Terry Porter, Vinny Del Negro, David Robinson, George Gervin, Sean Elliott, Vernon Maxwell, Willie Anderson, The Coyote, and Tim Duncan. Non-Spurs autographs are Gerald Wilkins and Kevin McHale.
Man, looking at that list above, that would be one heck of a great team with Larry Brown at the helm! I think my starting five would be: David Robinson, Tim Duncan, George Gervin, Terry Porter, and Chuck Person! The sixth man would be Sean Elliott!
I do recall meeting David Robinson at a game at Hemisfair Arena, and he wasn’t able to sign an autograph because his arm was injured.
Back to my job at the Spurs…
Before I continue, let me tell you that the Alamodome isn’t a basketball stadium – it’s an indoor football stadium with a seating capacity of about 64,000. For basketball games, the seating capacity ranges from 21,000 to 39,000. For some Spurs games, the upper level opens and that expands the capacity and for a few NCAA Championship games held at the Alamodome, the announced attendance was over 67,000 – I am fairly confident that they moved the court to the center and not to one side.
My primary responsibility was providing customer service to members of the Spurs Rewards program. Spurs Rewards was a fan loyalty program, and for each game you attended, you swiped a card at one of several kiosks located through the Alamodome, answered a few questions, and then you would get some coupons for free or discounted things.
I remember the first coupon received for swiping your card was a free Sprite! We also had coupons for a free DVD at Best Buy and a free pound of fajitas at Taco Cabana and somehow, I was able to snag a few of those.
At certain point levels, you would automatically be entered into raffles. For one of those raffles, I chose twelve winners for an autographed pair of shoes from each player. Steve Kerr’s autographed shoes went to a young boy. A few weeks later, I got a picture and letter from him thanking me and telling me that he wants to be a three-point shooter just like Kerr. The picture was perfect as he was wearing the autographed shoes. And yes, I still have that letter and picture!
On my first day, I was asked by manager to help somebody transport something to her car. I had no clue what it was when I first saw it as it was a tall orange box that had wheels on the bottom. As we were exiting the elevator to make our way to her car, I asked what it was? Her reply was the 1999 NBA Championship trophy! I was left speechless!
Wait, I have another story about that trophy that is even better. The Spurs had a booth at the annual Stock Show & Rodeo in February of 2000, and we had the trophy on display. I was happy to be one of the employees manning it for a few days. Most people who stopped by though it was a replica. Nope, it’s the real thing. When we were ready to call it a day, one of my colleagues was going to put the trophy in her car, and then go back and enjoy the rodeo nightlife of drinking. I told her absolutely not and let me take the trophy home and I would bring it back the following day to the office. She agreed! Really, she did! I even got a police escort to my car.
When I arrived home, my parents asked me what’s in the box? I replied, the trophy. I wheeled it my bedroom, and never thought of opening it.
Wait, now it gets even better than before. My party colleague and I worked the booth two more times together, and again, I took the trophy home with me on both of those days. The first day, I opened it up and took it out. It felt amazing to be holding it and lifting it in the air, just like Tim Duncan and David Robinson. It’s also not heavy. Now, for the second, I had a party and invited friends. It was an unbelievable experience holding the trophy, and it will never happen again to me or anybody else who was there. We do have quite a few pictures of it.
Of the many rooms in the Alamodome, one of them was filled to the brim with Championship memorabilia from 1999. I was given a few items. One of them was a program from Game 6. There was no Game 6, as we defeated the NY Knicks in 5 games. Another one was an autographed picture of Avery Johnson hitting the game winning shot in Game 5.
During my three-year span, I saw players and coaches up close only a few times and when it happened, I said hi and good luck in the game. I knew better than to pull up a chair and talk shop.
I saw the Spurs mascot, the Coyote, practicing his moves before a game and before any fans arrived. He just had on the bottom half of the outfit. Yeah, I knew who he was, and this was before he wrote a book.
I did have to help the secretary to the owner of the team a few times. I don’t remember why, maybe it’s because I had access to some of the Spurs Rewards merchandise. Yeah, I saw the owner’s office.
After one game, one of the Spurs players cut me off in his red Ferrari getting on the highway. I won’t name names!
After another game, and the fans were long gone, a bomb scare was called into the Alamodome. I think it was just an upset fan because the Spurs were in the middle of a losing streak. Even though it was a hoax, we still had to evacuate the building. It was also one of our Intern’s first game worked, and we told her to meet us in the office after the game concluded. She never heard about the bomb threat, so I had to tell a police officer and he went in and got her for us.
Usually, late in the 4th quarters of games, I would plant myself in the home tunnel if the Spurs were winning and the visitors tunnel if they were losing. Don’t worry, I wasn’t slacking on the job as I had a walkie talkie and held it very close to my ears as it’s super loud on the court. If I was needed, I would leave that area and go help.
I saw the local and national tv and radio personalities in the hospitality room before games eating alongside us.
I got to be a seat filler for one of Tim Duncan’s MVP press conference’s.
I got tickets to games and my parents were the lucky recipients of those tickets.
I got honored at center court a few times for my outstanding customer service.
I got to escort a visiting teams players daughter and girlfriend to their seats.
I got to attend a Spurs Christmas party with the staff and the players and their families. I was thinking the party was at a different location in downtown and Tony Parker may have thought the same because I saw him in my rear-view mirror. Note, I did make it to the proper location and Tony beat me (I had to pull over and call my parents for directions; this was way before GPS and smart phones). The owner of the team gave the staff members a Best Buy gift card.
Every month, there would a be a luncheon for all the employees and the Coach and GM would talk about the state of the Spurs.
A long time Spurs season ticket holder gave me an autographed picture of Tim Duncan when he first arrived in San Antonio.
One fan wanted me to take them to the visiting locker room so they could meet Shaquille O’Neal! That was actually a common request from fans; well not to meet Shaq but to get player autographs!
After one particular game ended, I was leaving and was almost at the door when a drunk female fan stopped me and starting flirting with me. She was very cute, so I played along but also noticed her husband or boyfriend standing near us. I just laughed and told him to have a nice evening and get her home safely.
As an employee with a Spurs ID, fans expect you to know everything about everything! I had to direct fans to concession stands, restrooms, elevators, and their seat. One fan was looking for section 123, and unfortunately, he was in football section 123. He needed basketball section 123, and of course, I walked him to the correct section.
Female fans would often wear such revealing clothes that it was almost impossible not to notice them. One had a tattoo that went from the back of her neck to the tip of her rear end- all visible.
I have a ticket stub for the last game in Reunion Arena (home of the Dallas Mavericks) in Dallas on May 12, 2001. The Spurs organization arranged to have two busloads of employees so we could watch the Spurs clinch a playoff series. They were up 3 games to zero over Dallas in the Conference Semifinals. The bus I chose was people from my department, some of the Spurs Silver Dancers, and the folks from Human Resources! Well, the Spurs lost that game, but it was so much fun to be there. In that game, Dirk Nowitzki from the Mavs broke a tooth, and when it happened, he ran so fast to the locker room, that I thought he had to go to the bathroom. We beat them in the next game to clinch that series. Then we were swept by the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. The Lakers ended up winning the 2001 NBA Championship.
I also have a ticket stub to the last game in the Alamodome from May 12, 2002, and we were given a ticket so we could enjoy the last few minutes of the game from a seat. Guess what? We were defeated again by the LA Lakers, and they repeated as NBA Champions.
Since I am talking about the LA Lakers, I do remember a playoff game against the LA Lakers, where the Spurs were winning the game and with that win, the Spurs would’ve been in complete control of the series and quite possibly another trip to the NBA Finals. Five minutes later, Kobe Bryant took complete control of the game and refused to lose as he single-handily defeated the Spurs and sent his Lakers to the next round!
In March of 2002, my parents and I visited New York City. Six months after 9/11, you could still see the smoke from the Twin Towers. When I looked at the NBA schedule for the New York Knicks during that time, one of the opponents just happened to be the San Antonio Spurs. The game was sold out, but since I was working for the Spurs, I asked the Director of Media Services if any of the players had extra tickets. Unfortunately, they didn’t. So, then I asked the Spurs Director of Ticket Operations, and she called her counterpart at the Knicks, and I ended up getting tickets to the game. Yes, I had to pay, but it was totally worth it visiting the famous Garden for my first time. My dad, my Uncle Saul, and I took a subway from Princeton Junction in New Jersey to Madison Square Garden in New York.
Why did I leave this job?
Well, I would’ve loved to continue working for the Spurs, but at that point in my life, I needed a fulltime job, and supposedly none were available. I had no hard feelings when I left and had a great time working for a professional franchise. When I look back, I still can’t believe it!
