Preview: Spurs Start Rodeo Road Trip Against Lakers

The Spurs kick off their annual Rodeo Road Trip in Los Angeles with a late game against the Lakers on Tuesday night.

San Antonio won't play a game in the Frost Bank Center until March, and the first leg of their trip sends them to the west coast to face the Lakers and Warriors before several Spurs head to All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles.

"Yeah, I think once you're here for a few years, the rodeo is something you expect," said Mitch Johnson, who will coach the upcoming All-Star Game along with members of his staff. "I think the road in general allows you to learn what the road is, which is obviously difficult. It's a different type of level of detail and execution to win on the road, typically."

"We don't play home for so long, and like myself, I'm not going to be home for like, three, four weeks, because I'm not even because I'm never going home after All-Star, we have the Austin games, so it is a little different." said Victor Wembanyama, an All-Star starter for the first time. "But ultimately, we're in the best conditions, we stay in the best hotels, we get the best food... people have worse problems."

Defense travels well, and the Spurs' top-three defensive rating barely dips when they leave the friendly confines. They give up 111.1 points per 100 possessions overall, and 111.6 on the road. San Antonio is currently 16-10 in away games, good for the sixth-best road winning percentage in the league.

The Spurs have a chance to notch their third winning streak of five games or more this year. This was the first season ever that San Antonio started on a five-game winning streak, and that was the first five-game winning streak for the franchise since they last made the playoffs in the 2018-19 season. That team won nine in a row heading from February into March.

The road presents plenty of challenges, but also the opportunity for team bonding and growth.

"I think it's also a chance for team to continue to spend more time organically, because you're not all going home, and I think it's just able to produce some opportunities of growth on and off the court," Johnson said. "In that sense, this year, to just add to it, those the funkiest rodeo I can ever remember. We typically don't go west, and we typically don't play this late into February at home, and it's very light on the front end. That's not important, but I just want to share that."

"It's always fun," Wembanyama said. "I mean, this job is always fun, but, yeah, it's important. We also miss our own bed, our own house, our family."

The Lakers got to sleep in their own beds last night, but they probably slept in after getting beaten on their own floor by the Shai Gligeous-Alexander-less Thunder late last night. Luka Doncic missed the game, and LeBron James led the team with 22 points and 10 assists in 36 minutes while Austin Reaves and others played right around 30. It remains to be seen who will suit up for Los Angeles in this one.

Meanwhile, the Spurs have been chilling since Saturday when they beat the Mavericks at home. No member of San Antonio's 10-man rotation appears on the injury report. Stephon Castle is fresh off a historic 40-point triple-double, and was just named Western Conference Player of the Week.

When

9:30 p.m. Central

Where

crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California

How to Watch

FanDuel Sports Network Southwest, NBA TV

Injury Report

SAS:

Lindy Waters III (knee) - OUT
David Jones Garcia (two-way) - OUT
Harrison Ingram (Two-Way) - OUT
Stanley Umude (Two-Way) - OUT

DAL:

Luka Doncic (hamstring) - GAME TIME DECISION
Adou Thiero (knee) - GAME-TIME DECISION