According to someone in the know, Spurs players who showed up Thursday at the team’s practice facility were there to get the physical exams always required before the start of training camp. They won’t begin working out at the site until Saturday or Sunday.
The NBA this week allowed team facilities to be opened to players who literally had been locked out since July 1.
Among the players reportedly receiving a physical Thursday morning: Team captain and two-time NBA MVP Tim Duncan, looking fit and ready to begin his 15th season in silver and black. Duncan has been diligent in his conditioning regimen through the summer and fall. He organized workouts at a private gym that until recently included teammates Manu Ginobili, Tiago Splitter, James Anderson and Da’Sean Butler, as well as players from some other NBA teams.
Matt Bonner, the Spurs union player representative, said most players were expected to have completed physicals by the end of the weekend and would be at the site every day next week working out in preparation for the planned start of training camp on Dec. 9.