Heading into their most recent game, there were two Western Conference teams the San Antonio Spurs had yet to beat this season. One is the Los Angeles Clippers, whom Devin Vassell and company have yet to play. The other was the Phoenix Suns.

“We're 0-2 against them, so owe them,” Vassell said before their meeting in Austin, Texas.

The Spurs entered the post-All-Star portion of the NBA year with the second-best record in the West. They're actually closer to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who started the season 24-1, than they are to the team behind them in the standings. And while San Antonio has beaten the defending champions four times in 2025-2026, they had yet to knock off a Phoenix squad that is very much in the playoff picture as well.

“Excited for this match-up, truthfully,” Vassell said before their latest meeting.

While the Spurs entered the match-up healthy, the Suns did not. Guard Dillon Brooks was out because of a league-imposed suspension. Adding insult to injury – or the other way around in this case – star guard Devin Booker exited the Spurs' 121-94 victory early with hip soreness.

“We know the type of energy, defense, and intensity that [Dillon Brooks] brings,” Vassell admitted beforehand. “They're still a really good team.”

Spurs look to knock off Suns for first time

Article Continues Below

San Antonio's first loss this season actually came in Phoenix. 5-0 for the first time in franchise history, the Spurs were already without De'Aaron Fox when they lost Dylan Harper to injury in the second quarter. The Suns took a seven-point lead after the first quarter and never really looked back, outscoring the visitors in the second and third quarters as well before a fourth quarter that largely featured substitutes in a 130-118 outcome.

The Spurs would lose again three nights later (at the Los Angeles Lakers), but bounced back to win three in a row. It helped set the tone for what's become of Silver and Black's season to this point.

Exactly three weeks later on November 23, the Spurs found themselves in Arizona again. Still without Harper, who would return shorty thereafter because of a strained calf, head coach Mitch Johnson did have Fox back. But he was missing both Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle. The Spurs' two young stars had suffered injuries in back-to-back games a week before. Led by Brook's 25 and Booker's 24 points, the Suns came away with a 111-102 victory.

That led to their latest meeting. Though part of the Rodeo Road Trip, games against the Suns and Sacramento Kings represent a bit of a departure from the team's annual tradition as part of an agreement Spurs Sports & Entertainment has made with the city of Austin and the University of Texas to play two home games in the state's capital city.

The victory vs. Phoenix served as San Antonio's seventh straight win, continuing their longest actual streak of the season, considering a previous eight-game streak included a loss to the New York Knicks in the NBA Cup Final.

The Clippers remain the only West squad the Spurs haven't beaten. Their first shot at LA comes on March 6.