District 1 City Councilwoman Sukh Kaur shakes hands with supporters during a campaign event. Credit: Brandon Rodriguez District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur is drawing online laughs for praising a fictional former Spurs player in an email she sent constituents over the weekend.
In the communique, Kaur thanked community members who spoke during Thursday’s marathon council meeting on a proposed downtown arena for the NBA team. She also assured voters the project limits financial risk to the city while ensuring the Silver and Black’s future in the Alamo City.
“The winningest trio in NBA history is Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Robinson, and now is our time to emulate them,” she added.
So, um, did Kaur mean Tony Parker or David Robinson? Or did she just meld the two Spurs Hall of Famers into some kind of monstrous hoops hybrid?
The gaffe wasn’t lost on Spurs fans, including Amador Salazar, a former District 5 staffer and current union organizer for the San Antonio Alliance of Teachers and Support Personnel, who was quick to pose the question in a weekend Facebook post: “WHO IS TONY ROBINSON????”
Whatever the reason for the merged names, San Antonio social media users got a chuckle out of it.
San Antonio resident Dave Garza speculated in the comments section of Salazar’s post whether Kaur was referring to motivational speaker Tony Robbins. Meanwhile, SA progressive activist and organizer Alex Birnel simply commented “lmfao.”
Kaur’s email followed Council’s 7-4 vote Thursday in favor of moving forward with tentative plans to contribute $489 million in public funding for a new downtown Spurs arena. The money will come from a mix of visitor and property taxes from around Hemisfair as well as ground leases.
However, whether the project moves forward depends on whether voters approve Bexar County’s plan to raise the visitor tax to 2%. If voters reject that move on the November ballot, then the future of a new downtown arena remains uncertain.
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It remains murky if Jones’ proposal, which she did not discuss with the city attorney, is legal.
Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones said she will call a public vote on the matter in May, although it’s unclear whether she has the authority to do so.
‘There’s ample information,’ Holt said.
Spurs Jesus asked Mayor Jones if there is an economic impact analysis on what would happen if the Spurs left town.
Under state law, a mayor can campaign against a county vote only if it’s done on their own time and using their own resources.
Spurs Jesus, whose real name is Cordero Maldonado, works for Centro San Antonio as a membership and sales coordinator.
‘I wish the mayor had asked me about my story, not just my wage,’ wrote San Antonio man Ruben Mateo Lopez.
This article appears in Aug 21 – Sep 2, 2025.