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Spurs Hall of Famers Gregg Popovich, David Robinson, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and George Gervin were in attendance amongst a sell-out crowd at the Frost Bank Center adorned in a sea of bright T-shirts in the team's Fiesta colors. Was the pressure of having the hopes of a city and so many Hall of Famers on his shoulders too weighty for the 22-year-old Wembanyama? “I wouldn’t say weight. I would say it feels safe,” Wembanyama said. “It feels like if you trip, there’s a lot of hands that’s ready to catch you.”
Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams' attempt to trademark the moniker "Iceman" is facing scrutiny from a legendary NBA player who shares the same nickname. George Gervin, the Hall of Famer and four-time NBA scoring champion, told ESPN that he was "caught off guard" when he learned that Williams had attempted to trademark "Iceman," the nickname that Williams earned during the 2025 season for his late-game performances that culminated with the Bears winning their first playoff game in 15 years. "I've been the Iceman for 40-something years," Gervin said. "I never thought anybody would try to trademark it. He kind of knocked me out the box."
While Gervin said he has not spoken with Williams or any members of Williams' marketing team, he said he would like a chance to work something out between the two parties. "I'm quite sure me and him going to get a chance to talk," Gervin said. "I can kind of bet on that. We're both men. I'm an older man. He's a younger man. Me doing a little research on him, what I found out about him, he respects older athletes. "I hate it the most because, man, he's a special young guy getting ready to come up. His potential is great and he does have ice in his veins. But that name is already taken up."
Spurs star Victor Wembanyama returned from a one-game absence Saturday against the Charlotte Hornets and showed off his full arsenal of skills in leading San Antonio to a 115-102 victory to close a six-game homestand at Frost Bank Center. Wembanyama poured in a game-high 32 points with 12 rebounds, eight assists, four blocks and two steals. The performance marked Wembanyama's second career outing with at least 30 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, multiple blocks and multiple steals, tying him with George Gervin for the third most such games in franchise history, according to ESPN Research. Wembanyama trails Tim Duncan (9) and David Robinson (19). "It's just a progression, in general," Wembanyama said. "There were many aspects of the game where we dominated them, and that shows because we won three out of four quarters."
Julius Erving won his second All-Star MVP, leading the East to a 132-123 win. His excellence is still fresh in his peers’ minds. But Gaye’s rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” is often what they think of when asked about 1983. The players on the court didn’t know he’d be performing, and they definitely didn’t know it would be a modernized version of the song. “That became probably one of the most recognized national anthems — never heard it sung like that before,” George Gervin remembered. “They announced ‘Marvin Gaye’ and we were like ‘Aww yeah.’ He’s a creative master, and the way he sung it, ain’t nobody else could sing it like he did.”
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Still, in 1983, no one was as good as Erving. “Magic, he had a great game even though we lost. Kareem played well. Isaiah Thomas played well, and of course, Dr. J was Dr. J,” Thompson said. “Doc was still good for a game like that. He could still get up and could show that he was the best player on the floor. He could do some things that other people couldn’t do with his big hands, the way he could move the ball around.” One play, in particular, stood out to him. “He had one dunk on my friend, Artis Gilmore,” Thompson said.
Matt Barnes: What similarities did Michael Jordan and Dr J have, whether it be energy or style of play… George Gervin: Energy and drive, you know? I mean, the drive was just in practice, they had the same drive as they played in the game. Man, I mean, it helped me to see what I needed to do in the beginning with Doc in order to keep up, and then with Mike, it helped me see that I had my turn. You know what I'm saying? I mean, if that makes sense. You know what I mean? It's like, had a good run.
Have you seen anyone in today’s game—like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander—who reminds you of players from your era? Michael Cooper: Yes. George Gervin. Kevin Durant. Yeah. You see players like him but he plays the game in a different kind of way. That young man is so….. The one thing I love about SGA is that if you look at his game, he never very rarely, maybe once a game but, I haven’t seen it in this playoff series see him take a bad shot. He doesn’t take falling back leaning all the way back — if he does, he scores. But he doesn’t take a lot of bad shots and he always plays the game at his speed and he gets what he wants. You know, one of the unique things that I was able to experience was a young Kobe Bryant. I worked Kobe out when he came in and did his workout with the Lakers and it was certain things that Jerry had wanted him to do — get to this spot, get to the elbow, get to the low post, get to the midrange and we put X’s on the floor to where he had to get to and my job was to keep him away from that. Now there were many times that he didn’t get there and there were many times that he did get there and every time he hit his shot but, the things that we saw with Kobe, is that he got to his spots. Great NBA players know where their spot is on the floor. Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson… These guys know where their spots are. They know if they get to that spot, 9 out of 10 times they’re going to hit that shot and that’s what SGA has.
George Gervin: The Spurs got a good real good news with Fox coming in and Wemby. They got a good nucleus to really put something together. Hey, y'all. Y'all know just like I know: The old era is gone. No LeBron, no Steph. Chandler Parsons: It's a new wave. Gervin: They got the young fellas now. So, everybody, hey, Lou, everybody is gonna be an ex player one day. Lou Williams: That's a fact. That is a fact.
Chandler Parsons: Is Tyrese Haliburton a superstar? George Gervin: When they needed him, he was there. You know what is a superstar? A superstar is someone you can depend on. Someone who takes charge when it's time. He got all the criteria, that's been proved that he is a superstar. So, I'm excited about it. He has some big shots in these playoffs to get them where they are today. So, he done proved to me that he does belong and he should have that title. No doubt.
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George Gervin on if he would be interested in coaching the Knicks: “Not at all, man. I want to hit my golf ball and do some fishing. I had my turn. I'm satisfied with it. I got seven grandchildren, I want to spend time with them.”
Jorge Sierra: Pascal Siakam passed these players in playoff scoring tonight Vince Carter George Gervin Tayshaun Prince George Hill Some serious names in there. Siakam is now No. 110 in NBA history.
When talking about Kevin Durant, there’s a real sense of mentorship, connection, and mutual respect. It wasn’t just about style of play — it was about a personal bond built behind the scenes, long before KD became a household name. “I used to be his mentor,” said Gervin. “The NBA had a mentoring program early on in his career when he was with Seattle and I went up there a few times and sat with him, ate dinner, talked to him, talked with him about basketball and also did it with him when he was down there in OKC, you know? So I had a personal relationship with KD. People would always ask, Man, who reminds you of you? And I say, ‘He does in a sense because of the effectiveness in scoring.’ But I tell ‘em, ‘He doesn’t score like ME!’ [Kevin’s] tall and slender and I think that’s where people make the comparison but our abilities to score totally different. The effectiveness is the same. We BOTH get it done.”
Jorge Sierra: Jalen Brunson passed all these players in playoff scoring tonight: Vince Carter George Gervin Anthony Davis George Hill Michael Cooper Don Nelson Paul Millsap He's No. 110 all-time now.