Spurs Invest in ‘First of its Kind’ Human Performance Research Hub
San Antonio Spurs Sports & Entertainment is constructing a 60,000-square-foot medical office building near La Cantera and The Rim on Loop 1604, dedicated to the study of elite human performance. Ground was broken on the project in September 2025, with completion anticipated by the end of September 2026.
The ambitious project aims to bring together researchers from UT Health San Antonio, Southwest Research Institute, and Liminal Collective – a performance company specializing in optimizing talent across diverse fields including professional athletics, performing arts, military special forces, and business. A key goal is to translate insights gained from elite performers into improved health outcomes for the general public.
“Our primary core business here is basketball, but layered on to that, what can [the players] help us understand about ourselves?” said Phil Cullen, associate vice president of basketball organizational development for the Spurs. “Can we take those learnings and then help create opportunity services programs here for San Antonio to help our public health care system as a whole?”
The new facility is part of The Rock at La Cantera, the Spurs’ $500 million, 45-acre campus that opened in 2023. The Rock already includes the team’s practice facility, event venue space, a restaurant, and a gift shop, with a parking garage also planned.
Plans for the Human Performance Center were initially conceived as part of the first phase of The Rock’s development, but were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘First of its kind’
Human performance, also known as performance science, is a multidisciplinary field encompassing physiology, sports science, biomechanics, and psychology. It seeks to understand and enhance talent and performance in high-achievers.
Andy Walshe, founder of Liminal Collective, brings decades of experience in the field, having previously worked with U.S. Olympic teams, Australian sports organizations, and Red Bull. He led the performance plan for Felix Baumgartner’s record-breaking 2012 jump from the stratosphere.
Walshe and his team have been brought on board by the Spurs to collaborate with other researchers at the new center. “No one’s ever aggregated these communities like this around common problems in this space,” Walshe said. “So it’s a first of its kind for San Antonio [and] for the world.”
The Spurs intend to attract health, tech, and biomedical companies or startups to fill the remaining space in the three-story building, seeking tenants aligned with the vision of human performance optimization.
According to Walshe and Spurs Owner R.C. Buford, discussions are underway regarding potential involvement from the Pentagon, with a focus on studying the performance of its cyber workforce. However, the U.S. Department of War stated it had no information to provide on the matter.
UT Health San Antonio will be the primary tenant, leasing 20,000 square feet of space. The university is currently evaluating specific programs and timelines for its involvement.
Patrick Kaminski, vice president and chief strategy officer for UT Health San Antonio, expressed hope that the collaboration and research at the hub will lead to advancements in human performance science and “better health outcomes for the broader community.”
The Spurs are particularly interested in applying the research to enhance player performance, exploring areas such as psychological insights to maintain composure during critical game moments and biomechanical analysis to prevent injuries and optimize the performance of players like Victor Wembanyama.
“The Spurs are going to [ask] what have you learned about the brain?” Walshe said. “What have you learned about rehab? What have you learned about the biomechanics of the basketball shot? They’re definitely interested in biomechanics because of Wemby’s size and structure. The guys are all getting bigger … they want to know how to optimize movements without injury.”
Research in these areas is already being conducted in conjunction with Southwest Research Institute and UT San Antonio, but the new center is expected to consolidate resources and expertise to address unanswered questions in human performance science.
Buford emphasized the potential for broader impact, stating, “What we learn about elite performance in an individual can be translated to teams, to organizations, and then can be scaled to communities.”
