SPURS: Spurs.com: Dallas Invasion

Spurs.com: Dallas Invasion

Good Luck Charm
Posted by John on Monday, May 15 @ 12:46pm

Everywhere we have gone in the DFW area these past couple of days there has been chatter about the Spurs-Mavericks series. On the radio it has been non-stop with the local hosts saying the Mavs aren't getting respect (sound familiar?) and on the street people are fired up about Game 4 saying the team that wins tonight will win the series. At a delightfully tacky restaurant in the shadow of the American Airlines Center that we had lunch in on Sunday, a waitress told us of a series-induced scuffle that took place the night before during Game 3.

The level of support almost sounds like it could be San Antonio...but if you had your ears closed you may not even know Dallas had a NBA franchise.

Outside of gameday at the AAC we have seen very little Mavericks related signs, clothing, stickers, flags etc. People are talking, but they aren't representing. Even the Mavs fan that heckled us (good naturedly) during Karaoke Night at our hotel had a Boston Red Sox hat on. That being said, we could still use some mojo for tonight so we sent the Spurs.com Coyote Bobble out
on the town to try and "Spur-it-up"...his words not ours.

It Is What...
Posted by Daniel on Sunday, May 14 @ 2:45pm

If the euphoria of Mavs fans in this town is any indication, the Spurs should be spending practice depressed about their chances in this series but the American Airlines Center was a nice escape from the hype on Sunday morning.

The players were relaxed and realistic about the work they have to do now. They haven't been in this position before, but the pressure isn't showing. Check out the video and audio clips to see/hear for yourself.

No doubt the best part of practice was Bruce Bowen using a quote we've heard quite a few times from the Spurs: "It is what it is."

Listen for it around the 11-minute mark of the video and watch the media's reaction. The Spurs have used that as sort of a slogan during these playoffs and it's becoming a fun game to see who will say it next.

Take A Little Trip
Posted by Daniel on Sunday, May 14 @ 2:15am

A Spurs fan's dream come true - go on the road and get a chance to see your team in person, in action, in someone else's house. It was a short drive up IH-35 (yeah, right) but finally we saw the unmissable Dallas skyline on the horizon.

That wasn't the only clue that we were entering hostile territory, though. The signs, the bumper stickers, and especially the talk radio were all making it very clear that this terrority belonged to the Mavericks. Even so, we did manage to spot a few Spurs fans making the trek to see the game (check the gallery for a pic).

Arriving at the American Airlines Center (AAC), I was struck by the excitement on display. The fans in Dallas were ready for the challenge of Game 3 and didn't mind letting anyone wearing a Spurs logo know it. But don't let the tv images fool you, there were Spurs fans in the building for Game 3 and it we had a blast spotting them in the crowd.

We had a birds' eye view of the action on the court and all the in-game entertainment. The Mavs use their jumbrotron constantly - running short videos to entertain constantly.

While some would be sure to ruffle the feathers of Spurs fans, most were quite funny and my favorite would have to be a fake awards show ranking the best cameo by a Maverick in a movie. Avery won for his appearance in Eddie (when he was a Spur!). Also nominated were Dirk who was in Like Mike (alongside Michael Finley!) and Mark Cuban from some movie where we was making bold demands from his office (maybe it was hidden camera footage?)

The Jumbotron TV was entertaining and the staff was extremely helpful and friendly, but unfortunately the game was full of the same old frustrations we felt in Game 2. Check out game blog for details, but despite the outcome, I still have a list of highlights to report from the first day of SPURS.COM's Dallas Invasion:

Seeing Troy Aikman stroll across a room full of reporters during halftime - they were too busy huddled over the complimentary popcorn to pull off an interivew.
Being far, far away from the Mavs Maniacs (the dude dance team) It was just too much wiggling, too much butter-churning...too much everything.
Taking in a hostile-territory game. Feeling the passion of the opponent, hearing the fans and seeing the Spurs come back from 13 points down ...it got me ready for game 4 but more than that, it got me EAGER for game 5. I cannot wait till this series is back in the AT&T Center.