Manu Ginobili injury: Spurs' guard to miss opening game

Limited in the preseason by both foot and back injuries, San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili is expected to miss the Spurs' season opener against New Orleans on Wednesday according to Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News.

The 35-year-old Ginobili played just 23.3 minutes per night last year for the Spurs, representing his lowest single-game average since his first season in the league in 2002-03. A two-time All-Star and three-time NBA champion, Ginobili has not been able to shake a nagging back injury that has plagued him this fall, and did not even bother to make the trip to New Orleans for his team's opener.

With his contract set to expire this spring, many are of the belief that Ginobili will choose to ride off into the sunset after the season concludes. The Spurs obviously want to play things safe with their aging sixth man in the early stages of the year, but Ginobili's back problems could be something to watch in the coming days:

@manuginobili won't travel to New Orleans for opener; back to be reassessed Thursday

— Mike Monroe (@Monroe_SA) October 29, 2012

This story was originally published on SBNation.com.