San Antonio Spurs Winning With Nuns Praying Against Opponents
The San Antonio Spurs have more than just great players and a talented coach, the NBA team has attracted a group of nuns who are praying against their favorite team's opponents.
"When the other team is making the basket I say, 'St. Joseph, sit in the basket, so they don't win,'" Sister Angelita Guzman of The Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco told ESPN.
Guzman is a part of a group of 37 nuns, many retired, that are staunch fans of the Spurs. The Salesian Sisters, a part of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, focus their efforts on helping disadvantaged youth while relating to those young people who love the sport.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"We work with children, teenagers. They love sports," Sister Maria Guadalupe explained to ESPN. "We love what they love. And so, we're interested in sports and somehow we befriended the Spurs and so we've been friends with them for a long time."
The five-time NBA championship winning Spurs are coached by the heralded Gregg Popovich who plays golf for charity efforts to support the nuns, responds to their handwritten letters and even has lunch with some of them from time-to-time. After the Spurs won their fourth NBA title in 2007, the coach and some of his players visited the nuns.
"The coach came with the team and he spoke to everybody. He took pictures with each sister, even if they were there in a wheelchair," Guzman revealed. "He would kneel down and talk with a sister, and he was very affectionate with us."
Even though Popovich has managed to lead his team to win five championships, the nuns still believe his team can benefit from their prayers.
"They do need prayers. That's what [Popovich] told me, he said some other teams are better than the Spurs," Guzman said.
Although many of the nuns dress in Spurs apparel, scream along with fans and question calls made by referees, they are serious about those prayers and Sister Kathy King offered ESPN an example of one:
"Heavenly Father, we ask your special blessings on the Spurs, Coach Pop and all their coaches. May the Spurs always play and continue to be the best they can be. ... Protect them from any kind of harm. May they always remember that they do well with God's help. ... We ask the Blessed Mother to help them and in Jesus' name ask God's blessing — win or lose. Amen."
While Sister Juanita Chavez and the nuns realize that God doesn't choose favorites in the NBA, she inisists "He praises every one of them and is happy for what they're doing. He doesn't show favoritism."
The Spurs' spokesperson, Tom James, previously told the Catholic News Agency that the NBA team did not mind having a group of nuns who pray for them.
"Having them in our corner can never hurt, and we'll take any advantage we can," James said. "We're obviously fortunate in this city to have wonderful fans of all ages and from all walks of life."
