For the first time in 16 years, the San Antonio Spurs will play a postseason game without their perennial point guard Tony Parker. His teammate and longtime friend, Manu Ginobili, is feeling all the nostalgia in the hours prior to Game 3 against the Houston Rockets, where his usual No. 9 won't be announced, as a staple of 221 straight playoff games comes to a close.

“It's going to be the first playoff game I play without him,” Ginobili told ESPN's Tim MacMahon. “It is a little bit strange, a little sad, too.”

The duo have won four of the five championships the organization collected during the Tim Duncan era.

Parker's absence from Gregg Popovich‘s starting five will force a sudden change at the point guard position, which points to veteran Patty Mills getting the nod, according to the Toyota Center's scoreboard prior to the game, per Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News.

Rookie Dejounte Murray should see a few minutes as well, with Ginobili getting some de-facto point guard minutes as well during stretches.

The 34-year-old Parker was coming off a nice string of games this postseason, averaging 15.9 points and 3.1 assists, shooting 52.6 percent from the field and a remarkable 57.9 percent from deep.

The Spurs will need to snatch a game at the Toyota Center in order to regain the lost home court advantage during a Game 1 126-99 loss to the Rockets on Monday.