Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports
The San Antonio Spurs' streak of 22 straight playoff appearances was snapped Thursday afternoon, following the Memphis Grizzlies' win over the Milwaukee Bucks and the Phoenix Suns' victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
The Spurs entered Thursday still alive in the playoff race, but were eliminated from the race ahead of their final seeding game, against the Utah Jazz.
San Antonio enters Thursday's matchup 5-2 in the seeding games.
In the years since their last postseason absence, the Spurs won five NBA titles in six finals appearances and head coach Gregg Popovich was the three-time Coach of the Year.