Brandon James, Vice President of Basketball Administration and Deputy General Counsel for the San Antonio Spurs, tells us why Austinites will be part of the Spurs Nation soon.
So, come on then, why should all Austinites become San Antonio Spurs supporters?
Austin sits squarely within our regional footprint and no other NBA team has the ability to activate here.
With Austin's growth being one of our organization’s key priorities, it’s not a matter of if the Spurs will be
Austin’s hometown team, but how soon. Thus, Austinites should get involved now because we have a
really young and talented team and our presence here is only going to grow.
Tell us about your relationship to sports growing up.
You learn so much from sports, including teamwork, leadership, commitment and the
list goes on. On top of all that, being active has been shown to provide so many additional physical and
mental benefits, without which, I have no idea what I’d do to maintain what little sanity I currently have.
Who are your role models - in and out of sport?
As cliché as it sounds, the people that inspire me the most are the people I spend the most time around
– friends, co-workers and my girlfriend. Athletes, celebrities and civic leaders do so much to help inspire
the world around them and I don’t want to discredit that, but the people I learn the most from are the
people that hold me accountable every day to show up, work hard and be a good person.
You’ve served as a professor at various Texas universities. What gives you hope for the future when
you’re teaching these young people?
Young people now have access to so much information and technology that the future of innovation seems legitimately limitless – and that’s exciting. Young people now seem insatiably curious and open-minded, and historically that’s always been a great combination for progress and advancement.
You live in Austin - what do you love about our city?
I’ve been in Austin for two years now and there is so much I love about it. Austin has the most active
community I’ve ever been a part of. Staying motivated and healthy is much easier when you look
outside and see so many people prioritizing their personal wellness and building community while doing
it! In addition to all that, Austin is an incredibly entrepreneurial city. The people here are beaming with
creativity and fresh ideas and not afraid to take risks. And best of all, similar to the Spurs, the city of
Austin has done an excellent job of keeping its core values priority during this period of immense
progress and innovation.