Head coach Mitch Johnson wasn’t in a celebratory mood after the Spurs won their first game of the season on Saturday in Dallas, as Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News writes.

“If you were in (the locker room), you would have thought we lost the game,” guard De’Aaron Fox said.

Facing a shorthanded Mavericks team that was down six players, including Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving, San Antonio allowed 31 points first-quarter points, the third straight game in which the Spurs have given up 30-plus points in the opening period, McDonald notes. They also gave up 46 points in the paint in the first half, a new franchise record for the Mavs.

While the game was close through three quarters, the Spurs pulled away late with a 30-17 final frame. Johnson lamented the team’s lack of consistency and effort amid the 1-2 start to 2026/27.

“Our floor right now is way too low,” he said.

Star center Victor Wembanyama said he didn’t expect the Spurs to play at the same level they did in the playoffs to open the season, but he also didn’t expect the sluggish start, according to McDonald.

“I wouldn’t call it starting over,” Wembanyama said. “But I wouldn’t call it starting where we left off either. It’s in between.

“It’s normal that we’re not as good as we were during the playoffs. It’s not normal that we’re as bad as we’ve been so far.”

Here’s more on the Spurs:

• Starting wing Devin Vassell said after Monday’s practice that the Spurs need to “become the hunters again,” tweets Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “I think we’re a little bit drunk off the success of last year and we have a lot of room to grow,” Vassell said. “So trying to just put that (last season) behind us …because we’re a new team. This is a new season…“
• Rookie big man Tarris Reed Jr. admits he wasn’t expecting to play in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game after he didn’t hear his name called through three quarters, but he made a major impact in the first three minutes of the final frame, when the Spurs extended their lead from three to 12 points, McDonald writes in another story. Reed’s activity during that stretch — he had three rebounds (two offensive) and dove after a loose ball — was the spark the Spurs needed. “I kept seeing the whole bench stand up (watching Reed), the guys on the court getting fired up,” Johnson said. “Tarris wasn’t out there shooting step-back, between his legs 3s. He was just out there playing his ass off.”
• Johnson didn’t provide a timeline for Tobias Harris (left calf strain) to make his Spurs debut prior to Saturday’s game, but he suggested that the veteran forward may not be out much longer, per McDonald. “He’s progressing on the court and it’s going well,” Johnson said. “We’re excited to have him back very soon.”