Popovich encourages Spurs as Wembanyama, youthful roster make playoff debuts against Trail Blazers

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama and most of his San Antonio teammates will make their playoff debut Sunday against Portland.

Much has been made of the lack of playoff experience on San Antonio’s youthful roster, but the Spurs actually have a ton of postseason knowledge to lean on.

It comes in the form of postseason appearances by veteran players like De’Aaron Fox, Harrison Barnes, Luke Kornet, Bismack Biyombo and Kelly Olynyk, and staff like associate head coach Sean Sweeney and assistants Corliss Williamson and Rashard Lewis.

But the greatest source of information and inspiration comes from the franchise’s iconic leader, Gregg Popovich.

A fixture at the Spurs practice facility while he continues to rehabilitate from a stroke suffered Nov. 2, 2024, Popovich addressed the team earlier this week.

“(Popovich said) just to be us, not to really do anything different from what we’ve been doing all season,” San Antonio guard Stephon Castle said. “He gave us another perspective on how well we’ve been playing and the position we’ve put ourselves in.”

Sound advice for a team that finished with the league's second-best record at 62-20 and won the Southwest Division for the first time since 2017.

Still, no amount of advice can replace action, but the Spurs are eager for their first playoff series since 2019.

Deni Avdija had 41 points and 12 assists as the Trail Blazers rallied to beat the Phoenix Suns 114-110 on Tuesday to earn the seventh seed.

San Antonio veteran Keldon Johnson, Devin Vassell and Julian Champagnie are in the postseason for the first time after playing through all or most of six seasons of futility.

“Me and KJ are super excited,” said Vassell, who is in his fifth season. “We’ve been talking about it over and over, even were talking about it this morning. It’s just good to be in this position, not only just for us, but for the community and for the fans that’s been here and kind of waiting. Its been a long time, overdue, but we’re here and ready to go.”

Wembanyama (22), Castle (21), Champagnie (24) and Vassell (25), Dylan Harper (20) and Carter Bryant (20) lead an energetic and athletic roster that finished third in both offensive and defensive efficiency.

“I don’t think there is anything as far as in the basketball realm that I think we’re nervous about,” Fox said. “Obviously, people talk about experience and all those things, whatever it may be, we’ve to go out there and play basketball and I think we have an extremely good basketball team.”

Portland coach Tiago Splitter played five seasons in San Antonio beginning in 2010, including being a key reserve on the Spurs' 2014 championship team.

Splitter, Manu Ginobili, Boris Diaw and Patty Mills established the team's “Coffee Gang," primarily made of Spurs reserves who spent a lot of time on the road drinking coffee and having lunch together.

As deep as their friendships are, Splitter knows those bonds only go so far when it comes to who Ginobili and Diaw will cheer for in this series.

“I think there is a romantic feeling about it, but that’s it," Splitter told reporters. “Manu is Spurs for sure. Boris, we’ll see. I got to invite him for a couple glasses of wine.”

San Antonio is 10-0 at home against Portland in the postseason, including arguably the most impactful victory in franchise history.

The Spurs exorcised a history of postseason futility with what is now known as the “Memorial Day Miracle” in Game 2 of the 1999 Western Conference Finals on May 31 at the Alamodome.

After trailing by 18 points, San Antonio rallied to win on Sean Elliott’s 3-pointer. Elliott tiptoed the sideline, spinning on his toes and keeping his heels elevated to avoid stepping out of bounds to drain a 3-pointer that proved to be the game-winning shot.

San Antonio went on to sweep the series and win its first of five NBA championships.

Portland averaged 17.3 turnovers while committing 1,417, the most in the league this season.

San Antonio coach Mitch Johnson became a little superstitious when reminded that the Spurs enter the postseason healthy after battling minor injuries in the final weeks of the season.

“I’ve got to,” Johnson said, rapping a knuckle to his forehead because there was no wood within arm’s reach to knock on.

Wembanyama missed three of the team’s final seven games after suffering a left rib contusion during the first half of San Antonio’s 115-102 victory over Philadelphia on April 6.

Castle missed two of the final three games with right knee and left foot soreness.

Harper injured his left thumb and did not play in the fourth quarter of a 128-118 loss to Denver in its regular-season finale on April 12.

All three will play in the series opener Sunday.

Wembanyama did not play against Portland this season, battling ankle and rib injuries as San Antonio won the season series 2-1.

Considering the Trail Blazers have not seen Wembanyama during the best of his three seasons in the NBA, the Frenchman was jokingly asked if he could be the Spurs secret weapon in this series.

“The best kept secret,” Wembanyama said, laughing afterward.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Denver Nuggets guard Julian Strawther, center, tangles with San Antonio Spurs players Carter Bryant (11) and Devin Vassell during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) drives against Dallas Mavericks' Ryan Nembhard (9) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Friday, April 10, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija, right, scores against Phoenix Suns forward Ryan Dunn, left, during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 14, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama reacts after being called for a foul late in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets, Saturday, April 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

LEGE-CAP FERRET, France (AP) — A raging wildfire in southwest France forced the evacuation of 55,000 people overnight Sunday, bringing the total forced out of their homes to 220,000 in one region alone, as flames crept ever closer to the wine region city of Bordeaux. Neighboring Spain oversaw its own evacuation orders on the country's east coast.

Authorities in the Gironde region, where Bordeaux is located, issued overnight evacuation orders for five more localities southwest of the historic city, as shifting, gusting winds and arid conditions complicated the massive effort to limit the fire's spread.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that after a “difficult” night for fire crews, “the situation remains very unfavorable.”

In southwest France, gusting winds fed the flames overnight Sunday, accelerating the spread of the monster blaze that has burned out of control since midweek, the Gironde prefecture said.

“The fire again became extremely virulent again and unpredictable, generating its own winds and advancing erratically toward the Bordeaux metropolitan area," Nunez, the interior minister, posted on X.

“It became calmer by the end of the night," he added.

The area that has burned, much of it pine forests and scrubland made tinder-dry by successive heat waves this year, has grown inexorably, expanding by Sunday morning to an estimated 42,000 hectares (162 square miles), the Gironde prefecture said. That is seven times the area of Manhattan island and four times the size of Paris.

Firefighters are battling to slow the flames' progression toward Bordeaux, both on the ground and in the air, with planes dropping water and retardants. Soldiers have been called in to reinforce fire crews' exhausting round-the-clock efforts.

Bordeaux Mayor Thomas Cazenave described the fire as being "at the gates of the metropolitan area,” having advanced to about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from the city at its closest point.

The Gironde prefect ordered the partial closure of a major highway heading in and out of the city.

A second fire burning farther south in the Landes region has also forced the evacuation of 30,000 people this week, taking the total driven out of their homes in the southwest to more than 250,000.

In neighboring Spain, authorities oversaw a new round of evacuations due to wildfires in the Valencia region. In total, uncontrolled blazes there and others west of Madrid this week have forced 116,000 people out of their homes.

A wildfire in a bushy ravine in Manises, a suburb of Valencia, that raged out of control for four hours killed one man on Saturday, the local government said, marking Spain’s first recorded death in the latest fires.

Earlier this month, 13 people were killed in a fire in southern Spain, the country’s deadliest blaze in recent memory.

Leicester reported from Paris. Associated Press journalist Teresa Medrano in Madrid contributed.

The rising sun appears through smoke from burning wildfires near Marcheprime, outside Bordeaux, France, Sunday, July 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)

Firefighters spray water in a burning forest near Lacanau, southwestern France, Saturday, July 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)

Firefighters spray water in a burning forest near Lacanau, southwestern France, Saturday, July 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)

Firefighters spray water in a burning forest near Lacanau, southwestern France, Saturday, July 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)