MEXICO CITY – The five-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs will take on the three-time NBA champion Miami Heat on Saturday, Dec. 17 at the Arena CDMX in The NBA Mexico City Game 2022 presented by Nike.  The NBA Mexico City Game 2022 presented by Nike – the league’s 31^st game in Mexico – will air live at 4 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. ET in Mexico on ESPN Mexico, TUDN and Canal Nueve, in the U.S on NBA TV, KENS-TV (San Antonio) and Bally Sports Sun (Miami), and around the world on NBA League Pass.

Below is a look at some facts and figures about The NBA Mexico City Game 2022:

30 million – The NBA has nearly 30 million fans in Mexico (Source – YouGov, 2022).

2.7 million – The NBA’s localized social channels in Mexico have more than 2.7 million followers across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.  In advance of The NBA Mexico City Game 2022, the league launched an official NBA Mexico TikTok account (@nbamexicooficial).

30,000 – More than 30,000 physical education teachers and coaches have taken Jr. NBA Mexico Coaches Academy e-learning courses since the program launched in May 2021.

262 – The Arena CDMX court will be made up of 262 pieces of wood squares and will feature The NBA Mexico City Game 2022 logo.

200 – The game will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories around the world on television, digital media and social media.

50 – The Spurs are commemorating their 50^th season anniversary in 2022-23.

42 – San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich and Miami’s Erik Spoelstra have a combined 42 seasons of head coaching experience between them.  Popovich is in his 27^th consecutive season coaching the Spurs – the longest tenured head coach in league history, while Spoelstra is in his 15^th season coaching Heat – the second-longest tenured head coach in the NBA.

41 – Following The NBA Mexico City Game 2022, the NBA will have played 41 games in the Caribbean and Latin America since 1991.

35 – The Heat is celebrating its 35^th anniversary season.

31 – The game will mark the first NBA Mexico City Game since 2019 and the league’s 31^st game in Mexico overall, more than any country outside the U.S. and Canada.

30 – This year marks the 30^th anniversary of the league’s first game in Mexico, which featured the Houston Rockets and the Dallas Mavericks playing a preseason game at Mexico’s Palacio de los Deportes in October 1992.

24 – NBA Academy Latin America, an elite basketball training center in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, has seen 24 former participants commit to or attend NCAA Division I schools in the U.S. since the academy opened in 2018.

22 – 22 NBA teams have played preseason and regular-season games in Mexico.

15 – Popovich and Spoelstra were recognized as two of the 15 greatest coaches in NBA history as part of the NBA’s 75^th Anniversary Season celebration last season.

11 – The matchup will be the 11^th regular-season game in Mexico.

10 – Both the Heat and Spurs are among the top 10 NBA teams in merchandise sales in Mexico (NBA Store Polanco and NBATienda.com).  

10 – This year’s game is being supported by 10 world-class partners: presenting partner Nike, AT&T, Gatorade, Hennessy, SAP, Tissot, Mercado Libre, PlayStation, Uber Eats and Take-Two.

9 – The Mexico City Capitanes have nine wins in their first NBA G League season playing in Mexico and are vying for a Showcase Cup spot.  The Capitanes will host the Austin Spurs on Friday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m. CT / 8 p.m. ET.

6 / 1 – The Spurs have played six games in Mexico while the Heat have played one going into The NBA Mexico City Game 2022.  The Spurs’ most recent game in Mexico was a 121-119 overtime win against the Phoenix Suns as part of The NBA Mexico City Games 2019, while the Heat defeated the Brooklyn Nets 101-89 as part of The NBA Mexico City Games 2017.

6 – There are a combined six international players from six countries on the Heat and Spurs (active and inactive):

• Spurs: Charles Bassey (Nigeria), Gorgui Dieng (Senegal), Jakob Poeltl (Austria) and Jeremy Sochan (United Kingdom; ties to Poland)
• Heat: Nikola Jović (Serbia) and Ömer Yurtseven (Turkey)

5 – Mexico is among the top five markets outside the U.S. with the most NBA League Pass subscriptions.

4 – There have been four Mexican-born NBA players in league history: Gustavo Ayón, Jorge Gutierrez, Horacio Llamas and Eduardo Najera.

4 – The NBA will host four basketball clinics throughout the week reaching youth players, coaches and referees from the local community.  Miami Heat Assistant Coach Octavio De La Grana, San Antonio Spurs players, and NBA Legends Glen Rice and George Gervin will join select clinics as guest instructors.  Tissot, Nike and SAP will support the Miami Heat clinic while AT&T will partner with the NBA for the San Antonio Spurs’ Jr. NBA clinic.

1 – One team mascot – the Spurs’ the Coyote will entertain the crowd at Arena CDMX.

1 – The NBA, the Spurs and the Heat are partnering with APAC, I.A.P. (Association In Favor of People With Cerebral Palsy) to refurbish one learn and play center and donate new equipment for youth from the organization. 

Fans in Mexico can find more information about the NBA at NBA.com/Mexico, download the NBA App, and follow the NBA on Facebook (@nbamexico), Twitter (@nbamex), YouTube (NBA México), Instagram (@nbamex) and TikTok (@nbamexicooficial.  Fans can also purchase official NBA merchandise at the NBA Store in Polanco, online via NBATienda.com, and at the Arena CDMX on game night.