Homero Macedo and Sonia Rodrigues arrived a couple of hours early for the first of the NBA Paris Games between the San Antonio Spurs and the Indiana Pacers to make the most of a birthday treat.

Rodrigues bought two tickets at 400 euros apiece as a present for her husband's 33rd last June.

"The seats are quite high up in the arena and not exactly the best," said the 34-year-old nurse. "But it's cheaper than going to America to watch a game," Macedo smiled as they prepared to attend their first NBA game.

"Neither the Pacers nor the Spurs are my team," said Macedo. "Kobe Bryant was my idol. I'm from kind of an older generation. The Spurs are a side with lots of young players."

One of them, Victor Wembanyama, has dominated the prelude to the clashes on Thursday and Saturday at the Accor Arena in Bercy, south-eastern Paris.

The 21-year-old grew up in Le Chesnay, some 17 kilometres west of Paris, and turned out for the club Nanterre 92 in north-western Paris between 2014 and 2021 before before moving to ASVEL Lyon-Villurbanne.

He went to the Spurs in 2023 as the top young recruit.

The Spurs have returned with the Pacers to play two regular season games as part of the NBA's international drive to boost the popularity of its teams.

Mexico has hosted pre-season and regular season NBA games for more than 30 years. NBA superstars have also played in Britain and Japan. France has been staging games since 2020.

Star return

He was the star turn the following day at the inauguration of two basketball courts in his home town.

Fatima Boudlali confessed she was heading to the game simply for the ambiance.

Read more on RFI English

Read also:
Wembanyama opts out of basketball World Cup duty with France
French teenage basketball sensation Wembanyama wins his Spurs
French basketball star resigns as Olympics ambassador over anti-Semitism row