The family of a 17-year-old San Antonio Spurs fan says the teenager is fighting for his life after he fell while celebrating the team’s sixth win against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday, May 28.
Jose Luis Rodríguez IIIwho calls himself Joey, was sitting in the passenger window of a truck when the vehicle hit a curb and he fell, hitting his head on the pavement, according to the statement San Antonio Express News.
Rodriguez was taken to a local emergency room where he had no pulse for eight minutes, his aunt, Yvonne Hudsonhe said Express News. He was then transferred to a trauma center and has since been declared brain dead KSAT.
“He left blood all over the street,” Hudson said.
The Kansas Jayhawks played perhaps the game of the year of the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season on Tuesday, Jan. 6, and for them, the 104-100 overtime victory over Texas Christian University meant something more. The Jayhawks played with heavy hearts and mourned the death of athletics staff member Scott “Scooter” Ward, who died on (…).
“I believe in God and I believe in miracles,” his grandmother, who is not named, told KSAT. “I’m trying to provide for my son, my daughter-in-law and the rest of the family.”
She also told KSAT that his organs are functioning and the family is hopeful for a recovery.
However, Hudson said this Express News that Rodriguez is unlikely to survive. She added that her nephew first asked his parents to attend the postgame celebration after the Spurs forced a decisive Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals, and they said no. Hudson said Rodriguez then told his parents they were under parental supervision before going to the celebration with just his friends.
Spurs fans have been taking part in their familiar honking celebrations since 1999, when they won their first NBA title under their former coach Gregg Popovich. During the celebration, fans often sit on vehicles or hang out of windows as they gather in downtown San Antonio to celebrate the Spurs’ victories.
Two nights after Rodriguez’s injury, the Spurs defeated the Thunder in Game 7 and returned to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014. After the game, the Spurs were rookie Dylan Harper urged fans to celebrate safely.
“I love you all. Take care of yourselves in San Antonio,” he said in his postgame press conference. “We’re not done yet. I understand you’re all excited, but you need to be safe out there. We love you all. We’re screaming for you all the time. You’re all traveling for us, you’re all doing everything. But please be safe tonight. We have a lot more basketball to play, so be safe.”
The Spurs will face the Knicks again in the NBA Finals starting Wednesday, June 3rd.
