Back to the Dome, back to 2002

• For months, the Spurs have rallied fans to fill the dome — capacity is at 65,000 — and break the NBA attendance record of 62,046.
• While accomplishing that goal remains to be seen, Spurs fans purchased 63,592 tickets as of last night.
• Breaking that record would be especially notable considering the Spurs are second-to-last in the Western Conference.

Flashback: The Spurs moved from HemisFair Arena to became the main tenant at the Alamodome in 1993. The venue was built with football in mind and would be sectioned off for Spurs games.

• Poor sight lines and a cavernous space prompted the Spurs to seek a new home.
• In 1999, the Spurs and Bexar County agreed to build the SBC Center, which is now called the AT&T Center.

Context: To put things into perspective for just how long it's been since Spurs fans gathered in the Alamodome for a game, here's what the world looked like on May 12, 2002, when the Spurs hosted the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals.

• "Foolish" by Ashanti was topping the charts.

• Current rookie player Jeremy Sochan hadn't been born and Keldon Johnson was 2 years old.
• The five-time championship Spurs had only one title at that point.
• "Spider Man" starring Tobey Maguire was the hottest movie.
• San Antonio staple restaurants like Carmelita's and Thai Dee were only a few months old.
• Tim Duncan was 26, Manu Ginobili was 24, Tony Parker was days away from his 20th birthday and Coach Gregg Popovich was 53 and clean shaven.

Our thought bubble: Much has changed since 2002, but the Silver and Black spirit that bonds the city and created a culture remains the same. Friday night's game will be a can't-miss event for Spurs fans.