San Antonio Spurs Rookie Makes Surprising Revelation About Hometown Dallas Mavericks

Could this quote by the rookie from UNC reignite one of the classic rivalries in the NBA?

Mar 28, 2024; Los Angeles, CA, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Harrison Ingram (55) reacts in the first half against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the semifinals of the West Regional of the 2024 NCAA Tournament at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA Draft took place this past week and new rookies have met with the local media of their respective teams. The Dallas Mavericks left the week with French forward Melvin Ajinca, who seems likely to stay overseas as a draft-and-stash for the Mavs.

One such player is new San Antonio Spurs rookie Harrison Ingram, a forward from UNC. Ingram was born and raised in Dallas and attended high school at the St. Mark's School of Texas. Despite that, he told the media in San Antonio that he was not a fan of the Mavs.

"I'm not, I'm not a Mavs fan," Ingram responded when asked if he grew up rooting for his hometown team. "I never really had a specific team growing up, I was always a LeBron [James] fan... Wherever he went, I was cheering for LeBron. I'm definitely a diehard Cowboys fan though."

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There were a few groans when he mentioned the Cowboys, and some in the media remember LeBron James and the Miami Heat beating the Spurs in the 2013 NBA Finals before the Spurs got revenge the next season. For a lot of San Antonio natives, anything is better than being a fan of another team in Texas though.

The rivalry between the Spurs and Mavericks really blossomed in the 2000s, as legends Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan went back and forth, combining to win the Western Conference six times between 1999 and 2011. It hasn't had the same spark recently, as the Spurs have been a below .500 team for the last five seasons. It's been more respectful than anything, with Spurs' coach Gregg Popovich making sure the fans respect Nowitzki in his last game and clearing out his defense so the German could get a few more points.

With both teams featuring young European superstars, Luka Doncic for Dallas and Victor Wembanyama for San Antonio, a quote like this could help reignite the old rivalry.

Ingram was a player the Mavericks had reported interest in throughout the Draft, but the Spurs scooped him up with the 48th overall pick in the second round. He started his college career at Stanford before transferring to UNC for his junior season in college.

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