San Antonio comes in with expectations that are on a different level. The Spurs are 4 months removed from losing the 2026 Finals to the Knicks. Victor Wembanyama is starting his 4th season as a 2-time All-Star and the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. Mitch Johnson said at media day that he wants Wembanyama to get better at "manipulating the game," which is a scary thing to ask of a guy who already controls it from the paint.
Before they get to Phoenix, the Spurs open their preseason at home against the Hawks on Thursday, October 8. That game will show how Johnson plans to split minutes and how much Wembanyama plays in an exhibition. Whatever it shows hasn't happened yet. At the open scrimmage he had 16 points in 21 minutes, and those minutes are a reasonable guess at what a meaningless October night looks like for him.
San Antonio's injury list is mostly at forward. Tobias Harris is day-to-day with a calf injury, and Johnson has said the Spurs won't rush him back with the October 20 opener against Oklahoma City coming. Jayden Quaintance has been around the team but hasn't been cleared for basketball activities. David Jones Garcia, on a two-way deal, is day-to-day with an ankle injury. None of that is enough to slow down a roster built to go back to the Finals, but it does open up minutes for the young forwards.
The game is Saturday, October 10, at 7:30 PM MT at Mortgage Matchup Center. For Phoenix, this is mostly about whether Ott's group can hold up for 48 minutes against a frontcourt anchored by the best rim protector in the league, with no Williams to answer him. For San Antonio, it's another step toward opening night, and the Spurs' depth will probably tell them more than the final score does.