{"id":2509,"date":"2026-06-05T14:36:33","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T14:36:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509"},"modified":"2026-06-05T14:36:33","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T14:36:33","slug":"the-superfans-known-as-the-spurs-nuns-aiming-to-bring-divine-intervention-to-the-nba-finals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509","title":{"rendered":"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>SAN ANTONIO (AP) \u2014 Victor Wembanyama stepped off the court for a moment before Game 1 of the NBA Finals, accepted greetings from a handful of well-wishers in San Antonio Spurs jerseys, then bowed his head to join them in a quick prayer.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2507\">NC attorney general demands answers from Ticketmaster after Carolina Hurricanes fans report Stanley Cup ticket issues<\/a><\/p>\n<p>They\u2019re the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco.<\/p>\n<p>On game nights, they\u2019re called the Spurs Nuns.<\/p>\n<p>New York has Ben Stiller, Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan among its superfans; San Antonio has a group of nuns who wear Spurs jerseys over their habits. It\u2019s a relationship that goes back at least 20 years or so, and to the sisters it makes perfect sense.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re serving the poor and the young,\u201d said Sr. Bernadette Mota, the director of the department of mission advancement for the Salesian Sisters. \u201cAnd in order to reach the young where they\u2019re at, you have to love what they love and then they\u2019ll love who you love. So, we have that affinity with the Spurs because it gives us an avenue to do our mission with the young people that we serve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This tale started in a most unique way.<\/p>\n<p>As the story goes, a couple decades ago, some of the retired sisters \u2014 who happened to be native Texans and big Spurs fans \u2014 would watch the games on television or listen on the radio, some even doing so while hospitalized. They would cheer for all the players, and for coach Gregg Popovich. But Popovich would sometimes seem a bit angry on the sidelines, prompting some of the sisters to reach out with letters.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey would write to Coach Popovich and let him know when they thought he was he doing great and let him know when he lost his temper \u2014 but they were really supporting him,\u201d Mota said. \u201cHe\u2019s the one that actually responded back to them, thanking them for their support for him and for the Spurs. It was really just a very organic conversation that started all of this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yes, it\u2019s true: The nuns would scold Pop for bad behavior.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey would, in a nice way, in a very nice way,\u201d Mota said. \u201cThey\u2019d be like, \u2018Coach, you lost your temper there, come on, we\u2019re praying for you, you can do better.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Popovich and the Spurs have kept a relationship with the sisters since. Popovich\u2019s late wife Erin, who died in 2018, also had close ties to the sisters and their work. It has been a mutually beneficial relationship; the Spurs love having the sisters at games, and the story of what the nuns do when they\u2019re not watching basketball has led to many people offering to help their mission.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2503\">New video shows moments before NC jail escape; $40K reward being offered<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve had a number of individual people reach out and they\u2019ve been donating anywhere from $10 to $100 and we\u2019ve had a few ones who have larger capacity reach out, too,\u201d Mota said. \u201cAll of this is divine providence, God\u2019s gift, because we\u2019re actually very much in need. Our mission, we rely on the generosity of people who are our partners and collaborators in our mission.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The sisters aren\u2019t the only fan group that the Spurs have embraced. This season also brought the Jackals \u2014 a group that was envisioned by Wembanyama with hopes of simulating what happens in European soccer matches, with organized chants, drumming and the like throughout the game.<\/p>\n<p>The nuns pray. The Jackals chant \u201cOl\u00e9, Ol\u00e9, Ol\u00e9.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Different approach, same intentions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve known for years that the Spurs community had this strength in them,\u201d Wembanyama said. \u201cNow to finally see it being channeled into something organized and efficient and effective, it\u2019s a great joy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Joy. That\u2019s the word the sisters use as well.<\/p>\n<p>It was certainly noted by those around the Spurs that the sisters gave Luke Kornet a special blessing during the Western Conference finals and he came up with an incredible chasedown block midway through the fourth quarter of Game 7 in Oklahoma City, helping to ensure that San Antonio would win that game and earn this finals trip.<\/p>\n<p>Divine intervention? Maybe.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s also not lost on the sisters that Pope Leo XIV\u2019s prayer intention for June is on the value of sports and how they can promote peace and respect across the globe.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know if his people who helped him out in terms of creating prayer intentions were also in tune with what\u2019s going on with the sisters and the San Antonio Spurs,\u201d Mota said. \u201cMaybe, maybe not. I have no idea. But I just thought it was pretty awesome that his prayer intention for June is for sports.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2498\">Lawmakers press NC county leaders over \u2018avoidable\u2019 death of 6-year-old<\/a><\/p>\n<p>___<\/p>\n<p>AP NBA: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/NBA<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SAN ANTONIO (AP) \u2014 Victor Wembanyama stepped off the court for a moment before Game&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2508,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2509","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals - Raleigh Moving News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals - Raleigh Moving News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"SAN ANTONIO (AP) \u2014 Victor Wembanyama stepped off the court for a moment before Game...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Raleigh Moving News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-05T14:36:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/eda87157c0d9ccdbb002a999547a6a60\"},\"headline\":\"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-05T14:36:33+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509\"},\"wordCount\":839,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509\",\"name\":\"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals - Raleigh Moving News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-05T14:36:33+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/eda87157c0d9ccdbb002a999547a6a60\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":853},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?p=2509#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Raleigh Moving News\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/eda87157c0d9ccdbb002a999547a6a60\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/raleighmovingnews.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals - Raleigh Moving News","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals - Raleigh Moving News","og_description":"SAN ANTONIO (AP) \u2014 Victor Wembanyama stepped off the court for a moment before Game...","og_url":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509","og_site_name":"Raleigh Moving News","article_published_time":"2026-06-05T14:36:33+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/eda87157c0d9ccdbb002a999547a6a60"},"headline":"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals","datePublished":"2026-06-05T14:36:33+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509"},"wordCount":839,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509","url":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509","name":"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals - Raleigh Moving News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp","datePublished":"2026-06-05T14:36:33+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/eda87157c0d9ccdbb002a999547a6a60"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ad773d37a15d5ad90fbb15b3d0caca5d.webp","width":1280,"height":853},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?p=2509#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The superfans known as the \u2018Spurs Nuns\u2019 aiming to bring divine intervention to the NBA Finals"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/","name":"Raleigh Moving News","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/eda87157c0d9ccdbb002a999547a6a60","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com"],"url":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2509","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2509"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2509\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2509"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2509"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raleighmovingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2509"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}