A kid armed with a bag of Bread and Butter Pickle potato chips just out-negotiated four San Antonio Spurs players in an H-E-B commercial. In H-E-B's newest commercial, the grocery chain's snacks prove so irresistible that Spurs players hand over their jerseys and sneakers without much of a fight, kicking off the NBA season with a dose of South Texas humor.
Hardball Debuts Tuesday Night
Titled Hardball, the 30-second spot debuted Tuesday night and stars Spurs guards Stephon Castle, De'Aaron Fox and Devin Vassell, forward Keldon Johnson, and the Spurs Coyote, according to the San Antonio Express-News. The ad leans into a simple bit: a child bargains with the players using Bread and Butter Pickle flavored chips, and the players end up trading their jerseys and sneakers for H-E-B brand snacks. It's the kind of lighthearted stunt that's become something of a preseason tradition between the two San Antonio institutions.
H-E-B says fans can expect to see more commercials throughout the season, and the ads will air across San Antonio, Austin and other select cities in South Texas, according to the same report. Viewers can also catch the spots on H-E-B's social media platforms. The grocery chain says it plans to sell exclusive Spurs merchandise at select stores across San Antonio, Austin and South Texas starting in November.
Shoppers Can Score Surprise Tickets
Beyond the new merchandise line, H-E-B customers who wear Spurs gear while they shop can enter for a chance at surprise Spurs tickets and additional merchandise giveaways throughout the season, per the Express-News report. The promotion adds another incentive for fans to rep the silver and black on grocery runs, not just on game nights at the Frost Bank Center.
The partnership between H-E-B and the Spurs stretches back more than two decades. The two have teamed up on commercials since 2004, the Express-News notes, and H-E-B has been a Spurs partner since that same year, according to SportsPro. H-E-B itself has described the relationship as a more than two-decade long partnership in its own announcement.
A Second Ad and a Preview of 'The List'
Hardball wasn't the only Spurs-themed spot in H-E-B's lineup. On Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, H-E-B released its first commercial of the year, titled The List, ahead of the 2025-26 season, according to the company's newsroom. That ad marked De'Aaron Fox's first appearance in the long-running commercial series, and it also featured forward Victor Wembanyama, per KSAT, which had covered an earlier version of The List campaign ahead of the 2025-26 season featuring Fox and Wembanyama as well.
A second commercial is also in the works, according to H-E-B's newsroom announcement. That spot, still slated to launch in the coming months, will carry what the company calls some South Texas flair and will feature Wembanyama and Fox alongside Castle. Whether that upcoming commercial is connected to Hardball has not been specified.
The ad campaign arrives as Wembanyama, the Spurs center, has been turning heads on the court. He dunked during an NBA preseason game against the Sacramento Kings at Frost Bank Center, a moment captured by photographer Andrew J. Whitaker. Between the on-court highlights and the grocery-store theatrics, San Antonio's basketball season is off to a full-flavored start.
